Black Rises
by ForevermoreAlizabeth
Summary: In this re-make of Rise of the Guardians, the children of the world are threatened by Pitch's nightmares, but the guardians are in deeper than they thought with Pitch's little sister, Black, helping his reign of fear. Can a bond between Black and the guardians be mended? Can a past friendship re-bloom in the darkest of times?
1. Chapter 1

_I own nothing. All rights go to their respective owners. Except Black. She's mine. Muahaha. 3_

_-At the Pole-_

"Outta my vay! Ze globe-" The large, white-bearded man stopped dead in his tracks, all the jolly spirit he once held now disspating at the horrid sight before him. The globe, with all of the lights of the children who still believed, was now surrounded by shadows, inky black as they streached around the mass, snubbing out the lights in its path. The front of the shadows morphed, becoming the sillouhette of a man that the Guardian of Wonder knew all too well, the shadow-man's head throwing back and letting out an evil, chilling chackle.

As he did, a puddle of blackness rose on the top of the globe, rising until it became a girl, not silouhetted, but her true form. She stood there, dressed head-to-toe in a cloak of shadows, the hood pulled so low that the only visible thing was the girl's pale gray skin, and one lock of black hair that shone dull silver in certain places. From the bottom of her cloak, shadows streatched down and enveloped the entire globe.

"...It cannot be..."The large guardian whispered, dread dropping in his chest as the girl splayed out her arms like an eagle, then quickly spun around, the cloak swirrling and twisting around her. In mere seconds they were gone, dissapeared in a flurry of shadows. The globe recovered, the lights slowly turning back on after what the guardian knew was a warning.

"...I must call ze others."The guardian said, determination and seriousness in his tone as he spun around, miniature elves and massive yetis jumping out of the way. What had just happened, he knew, was what they had all feared for hundreds of years. That the one thing that could threaten the children was finally back, and this time with backup.

The man felt a tug on his red pant leg, and he looked down, flustered and hurrying.

"Vat?! Vat is it?!"He asked in a thick Russian accent, the tiny elf below him pointing up to the skyview over the globe, where the moon shone bright and strong. But it did not look normal on this particular night. Emitting from the moon were waves of colourful lights, like the Aurora, reaching out over the world. The guardian raised his eyebrows and crossed his tattoed forearms.

"Hm, ze Man in ze Moon in two steps ahead of me. Yetis! Elves!"The man boomed, all hasty work stopped as they all snapped to attention. The guardian held his arms wide and shouted, "Prepare for guests!"

A hasty scrambling occured, with yetis running to prepare rooms and the elves...well...doing elf things. It was a matter of moments before the Guardians all arrived, and this time it would not be for a happy occasion. The guardian moved to the golden railing that overlooked a workplace below, right in front of the globe. In the moment of silence that followed, right before the arrival of the Guardians, the jolly old man sighed. He knew that girl who had stood at the top of the globe. A long time ago, he had been friends with her. When she changed, it devestated him.

But not nearly as much as another guardian that would be here tonight. A commontion behind him broke the man of his thoughts, turning just as a swirrel of bright golden sand rushed up and out of it popped a very, very short, round man with golden hair that stuck up, a chubby face and bright, happy eyes.

"Sandy!"The guardian exclaimed, arms open in joy as his old friend gave him a salute, an image of a heart popping above his head in sand.

"Oh my old friend, it has been too long, no? Yes!"The man chuckled, The Guardian of Dreams smiling brightly back.

"Incoming!"A small, sweet voice chimed, as a green blurr swooped into the room. A half-woman half-green and purple hummingbird stopped before them, her body covered in green, yellow, and purple feathers with a kind and gentle human face, violet eyes alert as her see-through, slightly purple wings batted behind her. A few baby hummingbirds swarmed around her, buzzing as she gave them orders hastily, gasping every now and then as she got the new location of a tooth in need of a present.

"Toothina! Buzzing like alvays!"The guardian man boomed, and Toothina, the Guardian of Memories, smiled, saying in a high, sweet voice,

"Not all of us can work just one day a year, North! Isn't that right, Sandy?"Toothina asked the little golden man, who nodded joyfully. North, the Guardian of Wonder, was about to retort, when he was interrupted by a thick Aulstralian accent,

"Took ya all long enough! By the time you fellas made it, I could have finished the eggs!" From behind North, an abnormally tall bunny walked, standing on his hind legs at a full 6,1, with pale blue fur and even paler blue fur on his stomach, indigo-colored fur creating markings on his body. His triangular face had two, bushy black eyebrows and deep green eyes, with a black strap across his shoulder and going across his chest, under his right arm, where boomerangs were held.

In his human-like, black-furred hands he was intricatly painting a small egg.

"Bunnymund, not everything is a race."Toothina joked lightly, Bunnymund, the Guardian of Hope, ignoring her and turning to North, annoyed.

"What's the big idea, mate? I got three thousand more eggs to paint, and Easter is only three bloody days away!"Bunny demanded, and the jolly man's mood dampened. With the sudden and noticable shadow crossing the man's face, the other guardians looked closer as he turned to the globe, arms crossed across his chest, 'Naughty' and 'Nice' tattoed on his heavy forearms amoungst other tribal tattoos.

"...Something happened."He said darkly, as a Yeti walked up, handing North a thin, black phone. North raised his eyebrows in surprise and took the phone. "Oh, you got it on video. Wonderful, I'll just show you zen...um...vell...how does this vork?...Oh! Yes! Here ve go!" He exclaimed, as a yeti stood holding the phone, lightly tapping the screen where the guardians gathered, the scene from before playing out.

There was silence, then Toothina gasped as she saw the shadows. An image of an exclimation point appeared above Sandy's head, Toothina's eyes widening and her baby teeth fluttering about worriedly.

"Pitch! He's back!"She exclaimed, and North nodded. "Wait, what's..."Toothina cut herself off as the sound of a paintbrush hitting the floor cut the tension. The image on the phone showed the girl, rising out of the shadows and covering the globe in shadows. Everyone looked over at the Guardian of Hope, as his face contorted into a scowl, eyebrows drawing together as he leaned in closer, anger in his eyes as he spat a single name.

"Black."

_Black's p.o.v***_

I stood a top a roof, looking down in the night, my hood protecting me from the unseasonable cold in April, caused by only one person. The wind billowed my cloak a bit, but not a lot, remaining still as I took watch over Pitch's actions, ensuring that no harm came to him as he initiated his plan, the plan that would finally end all of his suffering. That would make him happy again.

Anyone getting in the way would pay by me. The night around me fell, little golden tendrils of sand creeping into windows of children, giving them good dreams and sweet sleep. There was a time when I would have left them alone, when children held a greater meaning to me. A time when Pitch's actions had no influence over my life, when I would even play with the children that could see me.

But that time ended when Pitch was threatened, and I had to make a choice. I chose the Boogeyman. I chose my big brother. Doesn't sound so bad that way, does it?

"Hey, who's there?"A young voice called, and I looked down into an alley, seeing the cause for my chill. A young boy, dressed in a blue hoodie and brown pants, barefoot, with pale white skin and shockingly white, messy hair over two pale blue eyes, a wooden staff in one hand with a semi-circle at the end. Jack Frost.

His question wasn't aimed at me, which piqued my interest. I stood on the edge of the roof, walking forward until I was frozen solid by a voice so painfully familiar. A voice I knew I'd run into when Pitch had begun formulating his plan to destroy the belief in the children by defeating their guardians. A voice that brought back too many memories that I'd convinced myself to cover up.

Because he didn't mean to me now what he did before. Because now, all that I allowed myself to focus on was being Pitch's guardian. Anything else, even memories of a man, meant nothing to me now.

"Been a long time, mate."An Aulstralian accent came out of the shadows, and Jack's face became amused and playful, leaning on the staff childishly.

"Oh, hey there!"He said, the voice following dark and clearly holding a grudge.

"Sorry if I'm not so keen ta see ya, after what ya did last time I saw ya."

Jack's smile grew more and more amused by the second, saying airily,

"The Easter Blizzard of '68? You still mad about that, Hops?" From the shadows a large, intimidating-looking bunny jumped. 6,1, nerves of steel, master of tai chi. So I had been told. Hearing him and seeing him had completely different effects.

Hearing him brought back memories. Seeing him...for a moment...brought a feeling of longing, for an old friend. Of guilt, because I knew that if I stepped foot in front of him, a fight would break out. But these feelings lasted only a moment before my instinct jumped up and stifled them, focusing only on why these two were meeting now of all times. Easter was only three days away, and Bunnymund was always frantically busy at this time... So I'd heard.

"It was Easter Sunday!"He exclaimed angrliy, Jack laughing nervoisly as two larger figures walked up behind Bunnymund. Yetis, one holding a brown sack and the other a snowglobe.

"Hey guys, what's up with that stuff?"Jack asked, floating away, feet not touching the ground. Bunnymund smirked and spun a boomerang in his hand, saying in a cool tone,

"We're taking a trip, Frostbite."

In one swift motion, the yeti covered Jack's head and swooped him into the bag, the second yeti tossing the globe, a rainbow-colored portal opening in thin-air. The yetis moved towards the portal, looking back at Bunny in a beckoning way. He held up a hand and said cooly,

"Thanks, but my tunnels are faster, mates." The yetis gave each other a look and shrugged, walking through the portal that closed instantly behind them. I sensed that he was going to turn around and stepped back, throwing an arm in front of me, shadows following command and cloaking me in darkness just as Bunnymund turned, looking up right to where I was standing.

Though I knew I could see him, yet he couldn't see me, part of me worried a moment that he was looking right at me. I tried not to make it harder, to not look into those eyes, as he slowly tapped a foot on the ground, a tunnel opening up under it. In a second he was gone and the hole closed up, me throwing the shadows off just as a pair of hands lightly pulled down my hood from behind. A light kiss was placed on my hair as a kind voice said in a slight accent,

"It went perfectly. Each child, twisting in fear. The first step is completed, without a hitch, and soon...oh, soon children will believe in me. Everyone will believe in me!" He was so joyful, so happy, that I hated the news I had to bring to him. For there was only one reason for Jack Frost to be taken by Yetis.

"There is a minor complication."I said calmly, the hands on my shoulders tightening a bit.

"What is it?"Pitch asked in a deep tone. My eyes remained where the Guardian of Hope had dissapeared.

"A new guardian has been chosen. Jack Frost."


	2. Reunion Interrupted

_So I recently learned Pitch's backstory and will very, very faintly and scarcely add it into the story. If there's anything, anything at all, that you think would improve the story or anything you would like to see fixed, please feel free to PM me, I don't bite._

_-At the Pole- Bunnymund's p.o.v****_

"Enough!"Toothina shouted, right as I was about to give this twinkle-toed, bodgey 'Guardian' a lesson in Tai Chi..the hard way. He even had the gall to give me a smug little smirk before I backed off, more for his good that mine. My fur stood on end, a prickling anger rising up as I thought of that image North had shown us. It was unmistakably her, there wasn't a doubt in my mind. I'd remember her from anywhere, hooded or not.

But she looked different. The memories I had of the sheila-...of _her_, were of a completely different person, another lifetime away. The last time I'd seen her, though, didn't look any bloody different from that thing on whatever that device was that kids took videos on these days. Just as evil, surrounded by those shadows that she decided were worth more than us.

"Jack, my boy, let us take an eensie weensie walk, no?"North offered to the punk, who gave a skeptical look as he walked up to the larger man, who clapped a hand down on Jack's tiny shoulder and steered them another direction.

"He'll explain our cause, then I'm sure Jack will help us. Isn't that right, Sandy?"Toothina asked with a tone of uncertainty to the little Sandman, who gave a weak smile and nodded, grains of sand falling to the floor as he did.

I couldn't imagine that this was any easier for him than it was for me, with Pitch having been a Guardian alongside Sandy, right before he turned his back on us. Which was why it was so frustrating that the little date was causing such a rucus over being made a Guardian. Most people would be thrilled, but not poor, angsty Jack Frost!

"Bunny? Were you listening?"Toothina asked in a way that told me she'd probably been calling my name for some time now, lost in my thoughts. Cut me some slack, this wasn't exactly a happy occasion to happen right before Easter.

"Hm? What were ya talkin' about?"I asked, and saw a tired look in her eyes, but she repeated herself all the same.

"I said, I wonder where Pitch will strike next. Sandy told me he's already poisoned the happy dreams of most of the children around the world. That means that he's trying to go after the kid's belief in us, doesn't it?"She sounded on-edge and nervoise, more so than usual.

Before I could get a word in, one of her babyteeth shot right up to her, followed by a similarly frazzled group, all buzzing and tweeting at once. In a few seconds her eyes got wide, hands flying to her mouth as she gasped, wings fluttering quicker than before as her feathers ruffled themselves.

"What?"I asked, stepping up with a sense of dread. Never taking her eyes off the little hummingbirds, Toothina exclaimed,

"Pitch was spotted near my Tooth Castle! We have to hurry there now before he does something awful!"

Without taking a second, I turned and sprinted at top-notch speed, knocking over toys and elves as I went, Toothina and Sandy doing their best to keep up. I didn't even slow down as I burst into North's office, right through the two massive doors where he and Jack were standing, looking surprised at the sudden, hostile intrusion.

"Bunny? Vat is de matter?"North asked incredously. I stood up and said seriously,

"Pitch was spotted at Toothina's place, we gotta move now!" North nodded, fists tight at his sides as he moved.

I gave Frosty a look, seeing him following with purpose.

"The little dungie taggin' along?"I asked, seeing him give me a glare.

"Now now, get along! Ve have quite a lot of land to cover in a short time. My sleigh!"North bellowed, leading us all into a room that looked more like a loading dock than 'Santa's workshop'.

"What?! Nuh-uh, I'm not gonna go flying around in some beat-up, run-down, freaking sleigh..."Jack trailed off at the end as two doors in the wall opened up, the sounds of hooves hitting the floor and snorts from anxious reigndeer echoing out as they made their reckless way out of the room, pulling behind them a shiny, sleek, speed-built, red sleigh with golden accents.

North got a confident smile and a twinkle in his eye, saying smoothly,

"Everyone loves de sleigh." As the others filed in, I scratched my ear with my foot and said,

"Uh, thanks, but I think ma holes are faster-"

"NONESENSE!"North boomed, picking me up by my pelt and throwing me into the back of the sleigh, where I lay sprawled. He lashed the reigns and a door opened up ahead of us, showing the snowy sky outside. The sleigh lurched forward like a madman, North shouting back,

"Buckle up!"

In panick unlike my normal character, I shouted,

"Where are the bloody seatbelts?!" His laugh answered me as he boomed,

"Was just expression!" Oh crikey...

_Black's p.o.v****_

"They're coming."I announced, leaning on one of the golden pillars amoungst this puzzle-like castle, the place quiet now that all the babyteeth were being transported, the teeth and memories of all the world's children going along with them, back home. The nightmare that told me of the arrival of the guardians shook his inky black mane, eyes red and narrowed as I ran a hand along its muscular neck.

"Delightful. Why not give them a bit of a show, dear little sister?"Pitch asked, joy in his voice as he turned to me in the shadow of a building. "Tell them to wait, and when the guardians so rudely barge in, teach them some manners." I nodded and faced the nightmare, giving it a connection that only I had with these shadows and nightmares that Pitch created. He might be able to inspire fear and nightmares that would make the bravest cry out in fear, but only I could control the shadows and nightmares. Pitch had the ability to an extent, able to send them to the windows of children and on occasion as weapons, but we both knew that it was my specialty.

"Welcome our guests."I whispered to it, some sort of recognition clicking in its eyes as it bowed its head to me momentarily, before turning and galloping off.

"Imagine, this is happening."Pitch whispered, walking up to me and taking my hands in his, smiling kindly down at me, the resemblance between us difficult to miss. The same, pale-grey skin(mine slightly lighter), same black hair with an almost silver lighting, same golden eyes. I saw the smile on his face and everything seemed worth it, even though I knew very well what was about to happen. For the first time in hundreds of years, we'd meet eye-to-eye once again. And despite past bonds, I would protect Pitch with everything I had.

"I'm happy for you, big brother."I said, quietly, as a rare warm smile spread across his face.

"No, child. Be happy for the two of us."He corrected. I nodded back, but couldn't say any more, because footfalls sounded below us. I'd expected them to get through the nightmares quickly, but Pitch seemed a bit preturbed. I placed a hand on his arm and whispered,

"I will protect you." This seemed to calm him, his eyes focusing back on me as he turned, walking to the lip of the circular platform we stood on. I followed, and below me quite a scene unfolded. I masked the two of us in shadows as the guardians turned, each of them looking angry, only one looking truley dark.

"Pitch! Come out you coward!"Jack Frost shouted, and Pitch mused back calmly,

"Now now, is that any way to treat your elders?" They all stiffened as I threw the shadows off of us, Pitch standing before the guardians below with me next to him, slightly turned in to him. My face was black, looking darkly down on the people I had once considered friends. Friends, who threatened my big brother, the only person I truley had.

One pair of eyes burned into me, their fierceness almost faultering me. I didn't look directly at him, instead focusing on the newest guardian. He looked far younger than the others, and by the mix of fear and blind courage in his eyes, much less experienced. And yet, inside him, something was different. It almost stirred the shadows around me, some sort of power hidden benieth an innocent-looking exterior.

"Pitch...Black."Toothina said, trying to sound intimidating, "How could you do this? Where are all the babyteeth, the children's teeth?!" Pitch held up his hands and said with a sly smile,

"Now now, calm yourself. They're all safe and sound back my lair, you know, that pit that you all condemned us to all those years ago? Thanks for that, by the way. I'm sure all of your little ones are enjoying it, along with the company of my nightmares."

Pitch was playing Toothina like a drum, and I saw it in her eyes as I told myself to not feel anything for these people, who deserved everything they were to get. She let out a loud shout and shot right and Pitch, me moving before she even got close. I stepped in front of him and threw my arm up, a diagnal line of shadows shooting out and smashing into her, sending Toothina flying back down, Sandy barely catching her before she hit the ground.

"Tooth!"Jack exclaimed, then looked up at me angrily, holding that staff that I felt was the source of his power. "Hey, come down here and fight me!"

"Ahhh,"Pitch mused, but his voice was now down below, having moved during my defensive attack, now a shadow moving at impossible speeds through anything, invisible. Jack spun, the other guardians looking around for possible places that Pitch could be maneuvering in. Except one. His eyes never left me, and I sensed his anger, his hate seeping from him up towards me.

I remained emotionless, side-stepping and melting, letting myself become part of the shadows. I couldn't become one like Pitch, but I could do something better. I cloaked myself in them and jumped, landing just in time to sheild Pitch from a blast of ice, sent straight from Jack's staff. I threw the shadows back, knocking him down as Pitch let out a loud laugh.

"Jack Frost?"He mused, as I stood, knowing that Pitch had now moved and was planning his escape. We had thought this through down to the last second, running through every possible situation until I was confident that this meeting would end with a win in our court.

"Not much of a guardian, I say. Tell me, do the children even..._believe_ in you?"Pitch coaxed, and Jack spun the staff in his hands, a white streak of ice shooting towards me that I blocked faster than he could blink, a flame-like trail of shadow swallowing the ice and then attacking Jack, shooting towards him just like his ice at me.

"Jack, no!"Toothina shouted, as Jack was thrown backwards. I was so focused on this that I almost didn't have time to lean to the right, avoiding a boomerang thrown expertly at me with blinding speed, ducking down as it turned and shot right back, the whole thing happening in less than a second.

"You guys help twinkletoes, this fight's mine."Bunny's thick accent was laced with anger, standing in front of me with a boomerang poised in his left hand, breathing heavily and not out of exuahstion. We stood there for a moment, just looking at each other, well aware of the tragedy of the scene. Two people who used to have a bond so strong, now stood poised to fight for oppisite sides. Though I tried my best to cover it, part of me was sad.

The rest was painfully apathetic.

"Wanna take the first move, Black?"He asked. Hm, he used to call me 'sheila'. I suppose that terms of endearment aren't necissairy now. I didn't say a word, just stood stoicly and stepped back, quickly cloaking myself in shadows.

"Ay!"Bunny shouted in frustration, as I appeared again on the platform I'd once stood on, spinning and throwing a small shadow to deflect the oncoming boomerang. As the two clashed, an arm wrapped around my waist and pulled me up, throwing me gently in front of Pitch as the nightmare below us flew quickly and strongly through the clouds.

"Get back here and fight!"Bunny shouted, voice full of venom as I turned, throwing one arm back as I leaned around Pitch, creating a sheild of shadows to block what sounded like egg-bombs, the sheild freezing over and shattering as it blocked a second attack by Jack Frost, who had recovered and now bore a grudge against me. He'd have to wait in a very long line.

"It's time to go."I said quietly to Pitch, as I snapped my fingers, wrapping us in shadows that would quickly take us home. Once the shadows melted into the floor, Pitch dismounted the nightmare, reaching his hands up and pulling me off, quickly spinning me in the air and laughing.

"Brilliant! Just brilliant! You my dear were fantastic!"He exclaimed, setting me down and spinning, looking up at all of the cages filled with babyteeth, right above a massive pile of golden tubes, each containing the teeth of a particular child and that child's memories.

"Look at it. Isn't it magnificent? There will be no toothfairy coming to give children their little coins, no joy in the morning when they look under their pillows. Just...nightmares. And like that-" He snapped his fingers, echoing in the caves, "They'll stop believing. One guardian down."His voice was dark at the end, joyful.

I'd spent years talking about this with Pitch. Wanting so bad to make him happy. Willing to do anything to please him because he was the only family I had, and I was supposed to be loyal to him. Year after year, day after day, I worked to turn myself against the guardians for turning on Pitch. Yes, he had done something wrong, he had harmed the children, but he was my older brother and...and the more I tried to reason it the harder it was to come up with an excuse other than he was my family, and I didn't want him hurt. He had done something wrong. My friends tried to imprison him. I fought for him.

And though over the years I'd created myself into an entirely different person than the one I used to be, into someone cold and dangerous, though I was on Pitch's side, though I tried to ignore broken bonds, I was supposed to be overjoyed that the guardians would fade into nothing and my big brother would finally be happy... I wasn't.


	3. The Great Tooth Race

_Once again, thank you for your wonderful reviews 3 Now that I've gotten past the necissairy plot foundation, things are going to get very interesting very soon, I promise._

_-At the Pole- _

Toothina sulked weakly on the staircase ahead of where Jack Frost and North stood, Sandy sitting next to her and trying to console the depressed Guardian who had only one babytooth left after the damage done by Pitch and Black.

"I can really get my memories back if I help you guys?"Jack asked, eyes wide with determination. It was what he was missing, the one thing that could explain why he was the way he was, why the Man in the Moon had chosen him to be a guardian if no one believed in him, let alone saw him.

North placed a reassuring hand on Jack's shoulder and smiled, saying in his thick accent,

"Of course! We just find way to fix what Pitch and Black have done, and den we celebrate!" Jack beamed, hope rising in his chest, as Bunnymund twirrled the boomerang in his hand. Jack raised an eyebrow, curious as to why Bunny was so morose-looking, eyes focused ahead on nothing with a sour look on his face as he leaned against the wall near him.

"Hey Hops, what's the matter? Angry cuz a _girl_ got the better of you?"Jack tried teasing, but by the look that Bunny gave him, he quickly realized that teasing was not the appropriate thing to do, if he enjoyed having his head placed firmly on his shoulders.

North leaned down and placed a hand on Jack's shoulder, whispering none-too-quietly,

"Bunny and zat girl used to have...vat do you kiddies call it...a thing." Bunnymund stood straight and snapped,

"We did not you old date!"

"Bunny, why don't we go for a walk?"Toothina asked, fluttering over with Sandy. After giving both men a steady glare, he quickly turned and stormed off, Toothina following and Sandy staying behind with a sad look on his face. Jack, now utterly confused, looked up at North with silent questions written on his face. North sighed and ran a hand down his face, shrugging and looking after Bunny.

"Zis is taking a toll on our furry friend, you see. He was very close with Black a veeeeery long time ago."North explained, Jack raising and eyebrow and leaning on his staff.

"But Black is evil, isn't she?"He asked, and North looked down at him, holding up a finger, prepared to tell a story.

"Not always. A long, long time ago, Pitch was a Guardian." Jack's jaw dropped, not even able to fathom the BOOGEYMAN as a guardian, "He worked beside Sandy to protect the children, but something was always off about him. Never a truley nice person to be around, always very mysterious and dark. Anywho, he had a sister, Black, who was not a guardian, but was a spirit like you were before today.

"She was such nice girl, very sweet with a smile that lit up room! She love children and they love her back, and we were all friends. It was hard to not be with such a kind-hearted child, and we treated her like our own little sister. Of all of us, her and Bunny vere closest by far margin. We joked that they were making the eyelashes and hearts at each other all time, but they insist just friends. We all knew better, but with Bunny it can be difficult to pry and not get hurt very badly." North said lightly.

Jack was finding it hard to believe that that terrifyingly strong and emotionless girl was the same one that North was describing, and asked,

"So...what happened?" North's face fell a bit, eyes growing sad at a distant memory and a frown showing under his large, white beard.

"Then Pitch turn back on children. He was greedy man, consumed by darkness and shadows. He want all world to be in nightmare, and...and we had to stop him. All guardians were called upon by Man in Moon to imprison Pitch in ground. It was our duty to protect little children, and we did what we had to...

"But Black had to choose...friends or big brother." North trailed off, eyes downcast. Jack felt like he understood, even if just barely, how Bunnymund felt right now. If what North said was accurate, then Black had chosen her big brother to fight for and Bunnymund was fourced to fight his best friend. A small feeling of sadness overtook Jack, North turning and walking towards the railing in front of the globe, Sandy with an image of a heart breaking over his head.

"Bunny took very bad. Those two were inseperable, and now..."

"Now she's protecting Pitch."Jack offered, a thought dawning on him, "But that doesn't mean she likes what he's doing, right?" North turned and looked at Jack curiously, Jack holding out a hand as he tried to explain. "He's her older brother, so of course she's going to want him to be safe, but that girl you just described to me can't be all gone! Maybe she's still in there somewhere, just confused-"

"No, mate. She knows exactly what she's doin', and it ain't the same girl."Bunny interrupted the trio, all of them looking guilty, like a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar. But Bunny seemed to have lost his edge of anger, instead just serious and gruff. Toothina, on the other hand, seemed excited and bubbly.

"On the bright side, we know what we can do to save the belief of the children!"She exclaimed happily, everyone brightening a bit.

"If we can all collect the teeth around the world tonight and leave them their nickles and quarters, then we can restore their belief in me and buy us more time to defeat Pitch and Black!"The explained, and Jack got a mischevious look on his face.

"So...kinda like a race?"He asked in a sneaky voice. Confused, Toothina tilted her head to the side. But the other guys understood, each getting a competitive smile on their faces, even Bunnymund, who still wanted some payback from Easter Sunday of '68.

"Who can collect the most teeth by tomorrow morning? I like my odds."Bunnymund said confidently, Toothina still a bit confused as she looked from man to man. Sandy cracked his knuckles and a sand countdown formed above his head. 3. 2. He dissapeared in a poof of sand, the others shouting out in excitement as Jack flew off, North running to his sleigh with Bunnymund tapping the ground.

"Don't worry, we'll get those chompers!"He exclaimed, jumping into the hole and dissapearing, leaving Toothina and babytooth floating there, confused. They looked at each other and shugged.

"At least he's not upset anymore. I think this will be a great bonding opportunity, don't you?"Toothina asked, and babytooth nodded excitedly. The two turned in unison and flew out of the workshop, into the night to prepare for the race.

_Black's p.o.v****_

"THEY'RE WHAT?!"Pitch thundered, spinning to me as I delivered the news brought to me moments ago. I wasn't too used to Pitch snapping at me, and part of me wanted to snap back, but I understood that this was a crucial part of the plan, and this was an unexpected turn of events.

"Collecting the teeth...themselves."I said carefully, Pitch spinning and throwing a small flame of shadow into the bottom of a cage of babyteeth, causing them to scream in fear. I took a step back, knowing what it was like to be burned by Pitch's anger.

"I can do whatever you like, big brother."I offered, and he spun to me, eyes wide with anger.

"What is there to do?! This plan is ruined! Now they're all out there collecting those teeth...and...they're all out there. All of them, in one place?"He chuckled and wrung his hands together in that disturbingly evil smile he sometimes got, the one that made me cringe because this wasn't my big brother that I remembered.

"We're...we wont hurt them, right?"I asked quietly. That wasn't part of the plan, harming them. We would take away the belief of the children in them, and that would render them harmless, but we weren't going to actually do them physical harm. I may no longer be fighting for their side, but this wasn't what I wanted. Pitch turned to me, a soft face that I found appaulingly fake, and walked up to me, hands on my face.

"My dear sister, of course not. We will trap them and keep them contained until we complete the plan. I promise." I must have gotten very good at fooling myself, because I believed him.

_-hours later-_

I had to give them one thing: They hadn't changed. When one thought they were going to add a tooth to their collection, another would be there to trip them up and snatch it. North was ahead in this little race by far. At least, until Bunnymund lit a fire in one of the fireplaces, making me have to stifle a laugh. It seemed to be getting harder and harder to hate them as I watched their little game, but I knew that the only reason I was seeing this was because I was about to betray them in the worst of ways.

With that dampening my spirit despite myself, watching my old friends and trying to remember how they tried to harm Pitch, that that should upset me more than it did, I ended up back in North America, having temporarily lost their location.

"WOOHOO!"

"Found 'em."I mused, jumping down from my cloud of shadows and landing stealthily outside a lit window of a cul-de-sac house, balancing on the extended windowsill and looking inside, seeing all of the guardians standing around the bed of a scruffy-looking young boy they had awoken. The child, upon seeing him, immediatly made me faulter. For a moment, I forgot who I was supposed to be and who I was supposed to protect, instead letting a faint smile slip onto my lips as I spied the wide-eyed child seeing all of the guardians in his room at one time, eyes glittering with wonder and joy as his messy brown hair fell in his eyes.

"Toothfairy, you came!"He exclaimed, and she gave a nervious laugh, saying in her high, kind voice,

"That's right! We did!" He then looked around, seeing all of them with bags of teeth, North's by far the largest. Guess he caught up after that chimeney 'accident'. All of a sudden, a large greyhound stood on the boy's bed, growling and barring it's teeth, Bunny stumbling back a bit. I watching in slight amusement, seeing how Bunny recouperated and puffed out his chest, glaring down at the dog and getting into a manly stance.

Though the greyhound would be large to me, it looked miniscule compared to Bunny.

"Alright,"He said, trying to sound calm as he slowly placed a large bag of teeth on the floor, "Nobody panic."

"Um, you know what that is, right?"Jack asked, and by the absolute zero reaction that the kid gave, I assumed that Jack was still invisible to children, "That's a greyhound. Do you know what greyhounds do to rabbits?"Jack asked with a mischevious grin on his face, pointing to the dog as Bunny glared at it.

"Well, it's a pretty good bet that he's never met a rabbit like me."He reasoned, fists tight as I recited the next part quietly, in unison with him. I'd heard it enough before to know it by heart.

"6,1, nerves of steel, master of tai chi."I whispered, spying Jack in the corner, reaching the staff over to the alarm clock and, just as Bunny finished bragging, tapped the small alarm, causing it to go crazy. The dog's eyes dialated and in a split second Bunny switched attitudes. "Crikey."

I couldn't help it. I covered my mouth as I let out a small giggle, seeing big and tough Bunny running around the room like a madman from a tiny little greyhound. He hopped on the walls and over chairs just to escape the little menice, Sandy balling up a thing of sleep sand and throwing it, only to have it miss the dog and hit Toothina, who fell to the ground with a small sigh.

"Get this dingo offa me!"Bunny shouted, only to run face-first into another ball of sand, wavering and then falling backwards with tiny, sand carrots dancing above his head, the ball then bouncing and taking out the dog and North in one blow. I resisted the urge to shout 'timber' as North fell onto the bed, rocketing the child into the air.

Luckily, Sandy caught him and, with a curt nod of his head, the boy was out cold. In a few insain moments, the room was now dark and quiet, with only Jack and Sandy still concious. I sighed and chuckled quietly, eyes straying to Bunny laying there, sleeping innocently and actually curled up into a ball, slowly breathing in and out. And for a moment, I imagined how things used to be..

But my daydream was interrupted by a nightmare. Literally, it floated up to me, miniature, and nuzzled my arm for attention. I turned, cloak moving in the slight breeze, as I got a harsh reality check. I was not here for fun. I was not here for amusement. I was here for... for what? Pitch. Pitch, so he could be happy...right? That didn't seem to be a problem to remember over the years...but now, something had changed. Something inside me was changing, and I was beginning to doubt things I should never doubt.

I shook my head and looked at the nightmare, whispering,

"Summon Pitch." It nodded and turned, me knowing Pitch would be here in a matter of seconds.

"Hey, who's that?!"Jack exclaimed, and I looked over to see Jack and Sandy starring directly at me.

"Crap!"I whispered, and spun around, jumping into the air and landing on a torrent of shadows, flying on them through the air. Only once did I look behind me to see that Sandy was in close pursuit, the others having woken up and gathering in North's sleigh on top of the child's roof. I sent a warning shadow crashing into Sandy's cloud of sand, sending him off course.

"Black!"I looked forward, seeing Pitch on his own shadow torrent. I should have breathed a sigh of relief, but for some reason my chest only tightened further. I got up to him and jumped, landing in his arms as he looked down, me immediatly throwing my arm up to block a massive wave of sand.

"Pitch, how are we going to trap them?"I asked, Sandy floating around in front of us. When I got no response, I looked up at Pitch, only to see that disturbing, evil smile on his face. "Pitch?"I called, but he did nothing but step in front of me. Worry twisted inside me, seeing Sandy moving his hands, a massive ball of sand forming in front of him.

"Pitch, we have to leave, this is out of control-"

"Sandy!"Pitch shouted, arms open wide, shadows collecting between his hands. My eyes widened and I reached forward to stop him, but a wall of shadows came up in front of me. Anger replaced shock, knowing that Pitch was purposely stopping me from whatever it was he was going to do. "It's been too long my friend...and I'm afraid this little pow-wow will have to end...very shorty!"He shouted the end, and I saw the shadows swarm towards poor little Sandy, who did his best to fight them off.

"NO! Pitch, what are you doing?"I shouted, seeing the sea of shadows get driven back partially by Sandy's sand. Pitch moved, opening his hands as a bow and arrow formed between them. My heart dropped and I brought a hand down strongly, ripping through the wall in front of me and running at Pitch, arms out to stop what he was about to do.

What happened next was in slow-motion. Pitch drawing the arrow. A hole opening up in the shadows. Jack calling out. Sandy turning to him. Pitch releasing the arrow. Me too late. The arrow planting itself in Sandy's back, coils of shadows already starting to wind around him. His slow turn. His last brave face before his eyes shut. Jack's scream. My scream. Shadows engulfing Sandy and dissapearing. Jack's eyes going wide and tears falling.

Time resumed to normal, Jack pointing his staff at Pitch. Of course, I only heard what happened next, because somewhere between the arrow being released and planting itself in Sandy, and Sandy being destroyed by the darkness, I had fallen off of the shadow turrent, having not been able to stop when I lunged at Pitch, unbeknownst to him. I fell through the air as a massive boom sounded above me, closing my eyes as I felt I would fall and fall until I hit cement.

But it wasn't so much as cement as it was wood, as my shoulder came into contact with a wavering wooden floor, the breath leaving me as my eyes flew open. Sleigh. North's sleigh. I was on North's sleigh. Crap.

To make matters worse, everyone was focused on the massive war happening just above us. My eyes went wide as I managed to get and elbow up on a yellow seat, no one paying attention to me, breath taken no longer by the fall but by what Jack was doing. A massive fource of pure ice was shooting from him, strength so unheard of that, after a moment, a massive crack sounded and Pitch was thrown through the air, dissapearing in a cloud of shadows that dissipated. The sleigh lurched and I was thrown back, adding insult to injury, as North caught Jack into the sleigh just in time.

"Jack!"Toothina exclaimed, running to his side and helping him sit up. He looked out of it, groggy and in pain. "How did you do that?"She asked, and Jack shook his head, eyes glazed and dizzy. I'd known he had a hidden strenght, but I could never have imagined something like that..

"We lost Sandy..."Jack muttered, as if it were his fault. If it were anyones fault, it was mine, for being too slow and trusting Pitch's word.

"We mighta', but we have her."A dark and bitter Aussi accent said above me and, for the first time, everyone turned to me, surprised.

I looked at them, holding my sore ribs and feeling a cut on my wrist stinging like no other, a lock of hair falling in my face and leaning sideways on the seat. There was a moment of silence, and I exhaled, falling back on the seat.

"To the Pole."North said curtly in his accent, the sleigh lurching and causing me greater pain. Though, at a time like this, I doubt they cared. Bunny sat literally as far from me as possible, back to me, with Toothina trying to ignore me by tending to Jack, who cast glances my way every now and again. None of them were afraid of me escaping at the moment, knowing that I was too weak to do much of anything.

Besides, after seeing what happened to Sandy, my chest felt like it was filled with bricks, and whatever punishment they had waiting for me...I deserved it.

_-On an overgrown beach-_

Pitch stood, shaking himself from that massive, wonderful display of power. Things had gone so much better than planned, and nothing could have ruined this.

"One Guardian down, the other's power waning slowly. And that Jack Frost...oh yes, I think we could make an excellent team, don't you think Black?"Pitch asked, looking into the sky. After a moment he got no response, and he rolled his eyes. "Oh come now, don't give me the silent treatment because I made a small white lie, it was for your own-"

He cut himself off, looking around and seeing an empty beach, spare a few nightmares.

"Black? Black!"He called cautiously, and then dread set in. He spun towards the sea and shouted at the top of his lungs, "BLAACK!"


	4. Cinnamon Roles

_-At the Pole- Black's p.o.v***_

The four flickering lights below wavered in the glass of the window I sat at, the small sitting area covered in dark red fabric. The entire room held the same decore, with reds and greens and blacks, all designed in a way that made the room both moody and cheerful at the same time. If I had my way, I wouldn't be in here, locked in this room with my hands tied in what I deduced as a 'sheep shank' knot, just a bit too tight on my wrists. If I had my way, I'd be down there with them.

No, that's not right. If things went my way, if they _ever_ went my way, then Sandy wouldn't be gone. Pitch wouldn't have killed him. Pitch wouldn't have betrayed them in the first place, and we would all still be friends and we would all be happy. If I had my way, it wouldn't have taken Sandy's life to shake myself from the shadows that I'd kept over my eyes all these years.

But I'd fooled and fooled myself into believing that Pitch had done no wrong, that I should trust him blindly because he only wanted what was best. That making him happy was the reason I was alive. He killed Sandy, one of my formerly closest friends, and purposely prevented me from stopping him in doing so. All along I'd tried and tried to convince myself that I should hate the guardians, that they were evil, but now I saw. I saw wide and clear.

Which was why I wasn't trying to escape and get back to Pitch. I was in no hurry to go running back to him, brother or no, because he had opened my eyes wether he wanted to or not. And I hated myself for believing him. I hated myself for letting Sandy go, for leaving my friends...and for still having a small part of me still wanting to keep Pitch safe.

I felt a presence behind me, and my eyes focused on the blurry image in the window. The person I was expecting wasn't reflected, but someone much more...welcoming, was. I gathered up shadow in my palms, feeling and seeing the person stiffen at the sight. I looked down into my hands and morphed the shadows into something much more innocent than whatever North was imagining behind me, the shadows swirrling around my palms and then stilling, shooting out and leaving a small, yellow candle in my hands, the flame flickering humbly.

I pushed back from the edge and stood, cloak lightly brushing the floor as I quickly spun, facing a slightly on-edge North, holding the candle innocently out to him, no emotion written on my face so as not to show how incredibly ashamed I was. It took him a moment, but he slowly looked down at the candle, and his face and body softened. I held it out to him more and broke my silence towards them.

"Can you put this down there?"I asked quietly, voice even if not a bit...almost sad sounding. North's face fell a bit, sad-looking and at a loss for words, taking a moment of hesitation before reaching forward and taking the small candle in his massive hands, dwarfing it easily.

"..Black. You don't have to do zis."He said in his thick Russian accent, looking at me with a kind face. A kind face that, while I didn't deserve it, made me slightly more comftorble. It was this smile, the one that was always jolly and looking for the wonder inside everything, that first made me want to befriend him when we met, me trying to sing a child to sleep that I'de spent all day playing tag with. Those times seemed so far away, making it seem impossible that I'de turned my back on the children just as Pitch had done, when I'd loved them so much.

"I'm so sorry for what Pitch did."I said, and North was about to speak, but I felt the need to explain myself, to possibly lessen the ill-will that they had towards me, "He promised me that no one would get hurt. That was why I followed along as much as I did... But he lied." North's face showed slight surprise, and I looked away, at the large bed against the wall.

"I should have known. I shouldn't have tried to fool myself like I did..."I shook my head in exauhstion, "And I shouldn't expect you to believe a word I'm saying, should I?" I looked back up at him, and what I saw caught me so off-guard that I actually took a small step back, confused and bewildered by the smile that was on the large Russian's face, the smile of wonder and warmth that I'd gotten all those years ago.

He leaned towards me and said,

"I believe in lot of things, for instance, that people can...make mistake once in while." I gulped, fighting back sappy, sobby words for this man. I couldn't not believe him, being so kind and generous towards me when he should hate me. But that was just who North was, always managed to look over my name on the Naughty List years ago, always kind, always making people around him happier...

"You shouldn't be so kind to me. I appreciate it, but...what I've done is just as bad as what Pitch has done. I've turned my back on the children, on you all. I'm the reason Sandy's gone! Bunnymund has a right to be this hostile towards me, and you should, too. After all you've done for me, after being my friends for years, I side with the brother that went against everything I loved simply because he was my family! And it took Sandy's death to make me see all of this, to see that I shouldn't have hated you. I caused Tooth to be losing her power, I let Pitch give those children nightmares! I am Pitch now! So please, don't give me sympathy because I-"

"Join us."

I stopped, panting from my outburst, the room silent after North's short interruption. It actually took me a moment to process what he had said, and once I had, I still couldn't fully grasp it.

"...What?"I asked incredously. North just beamed confidently and said,

"Join us. If what you say is true, zen we could use all help we can get, no? Yes."

"North...but...I..."I stammered. Yes, I hated Pitch, and yes, I wanted the guardians back as my friends somewhere inside me, but going _against Pitch?_! Did he not understand that A) part of me still wanted to protect Pitch and B) the others would certainly not agree to this.

"You vant to help. I know you do. I see you grow up into strong girl, and the girl I used to know is still inside you, riiiiight...there."North explained, pointing to my heart. I looked at him, and then the candle. Something inside me did want to help. Something else told me that helping them might be harder than going against them in the first place.

"You haven't talked to Bunny about this, have you?"I asked, and there was a silence to answer me. I looked up into North's eyes and said, "He hates me."

"No, he just...very hurt."North said, tone a bit softer as he stepped towards me. "You vere veeery close to his heart, inseperable. He care very much about you, and when you leave, when you fight for Pitch...it hit very hard our little Bunny friend. He never smiled as much as he used to. Seeing you now, it will take him time. But as there is old Black inside you, there is old Bunny inside him."He beamed at me softly and placed a large hand on my head, "Give time, he will come back."

While I didn't believe that after seeing the bitter hate in Bunny's eyes, I still nodded.

"I give you time to think, in morning we discuss, no? Yes. Night Night!"North announced, standing straight and carrying the candle out of the room with him, quietly shutting the door behind him, leaving me along in my thoughts. Slowly, I turned to the window, to the small circle of candles below. To the North Pole.

_-In the Morning-_

"Where is she? Ay, anyone seen-"Bunny's voice was cut off as they all slid into the wood-designed, Christmassy kitchen, each pair of eyes looking wide at me as I calmly turned, balancing the plate of cinnamon roles on my hands, the bottom of the plate hot on my palms. There was an awkward silence during which I placed the plate on the island in the center of the kitchen and brushed my hands off, saying cooly and nonchalantly,

"Breakfast."

North reached for one, but Bunny blocked him with an arm, giving me a suspicious glare that I tried to ignore, while Toothina and Jack exchanged looks of awkwardness and confusion.

"What's the big idea-hey! How'd ya undo that knot?!"Bunny demanded, seeing my hands free of their bonds. I gave him a steady, emotionless look and said slyly,

"You taught me how to undo it once, remember?" He glared harder and stepped towards me, voice low and furious as he growled,

"Yeah, a long, long time ago, it seems."

"Now Bunny, I'm sure Black has an explination, right?"Toothina offered shyly. I looked over at her for a moment. Damn, was she really as forgiving as North, even after what I did to all her baby teeth? Now that almost touched me as much as Bunny's anger hurt.

"She does!"North interrupted, Bunny's eyes never leaving me, hand resting on his boomerang like a gun.

"Do tell."Bunny mused, and North opened his arms out wide in excitement and boomed gloriously,

"Black and I have talk last night, and she has agreed to help!" Bunny's face dropped and his eyes grew wide, spinning around and shouting so furiously that his accent jumbled a few words.

"Ya did wha ya old date?! Do ya even...she...she killed Sandy!"

"Bunny!"Toothina scolded, but I got to him first.

"I didn't kill Sandy, Pitch did."I said in a low, warning tone, shadows reacting to my anger and beginning to appear around me, like fire around my cloak, wavering and moving.

"Uh, now, guys-"Jack tried, but Bunnymund turned and cut him off, a glare under his black eyebrows and fists tight.

"And who was it you protect?"He asked low and coaxing.

I took a few steps towards him, saying with my teeth gritted and anger in my veins,

"He promised he wouldn't hurt anyone."

"Oh, and you believed him, did ya?"

That did it. Shadows flamed from my back as I quickly advanced towards him, anger bliding me as I said harshly,

"Yes, I did, and you know what? Those words seem pretty big for a bunny who couldn't catch a girl almost half his size who isn't even a guardian! Or was all of that 'Master of Tai Chi' stuff made up like all the children will believe you are if you don't accept my help! I didn't want Sandy to get hurt, but keep talking like that and I'll personally hurt you!"

I ended it with stopping abruptly, only an inch away from him and looking far up at him with as much venom as I could muster, all of my anger actually the hurt I felt as his glare and bitter mistrust seeped into me, the shadows flaming around me darkly and violently, everyone starring. Bunny didn't even flinch as he leaned down, saying in a low tone,

"I'm not scared of you."

There was an intense stare off between the two of us, my glare only powered by me taking my immense hurt out on him. This man that had once meant so much to me. The memories of him when he would actually smile, of when he taught me a few things from his arsenal, seemed to be just that. Memories. Now he hated me, and while I couldn't blame him, it hurt. Bad.

"Weeelll...I go get new pair of pants. Then, after eating delichious breakfast, we figure out what to do about Pitch."North said, trying to cut the tension. I immediatly spun and walked away from Bunny, past Toothina and Jack, and down the hall. I was so flustered, so angry/hurt, that I only stopped when I arrived at a massive, wall-sized window with a little bench attatched to the sill to sit on. I plopped down and huffed, slouching and glaring as the little, pure-white snowflakes fell upon already-feet-deep mounds all around.

Agreeably, that wasn't the best way to display my new 'Hey, I'm on your side' attitude. But... But what North had said last night, about how close Bunny and I had been...it was true. We were close. Closer than most people. From the first day I met him, we became best friends. I didn't know then, and I still don't know now, how or why I was so drawn to the tall, odd, Australian Easter Bunny. I couldn't tell you why I trusted him, or why almost all of my best memories were in the Warren painting Easter Eggs, talking, laughing, and when he would try(and usually fail) to teach me tai chi or how to use a boomerang.

All lessons either ended in an argument or me owing him a new boomerang. But no matter what happened, his smile was the best thing to cure it. He didn't give it a lot, normally he was very 'manly' and 'tough' and 'serious', but that only made his smile that much more special. It lit up his emerald-green eyes like Christmas lights, even though he insisted Easter was more important than Christmas, and you couldn't help but smile back.

And now all there was was a glare and bitterness.

Toothina floated down next to me, placing her hand over mine on my knee, my cloak falling partially open. I gently took her hand in mine and said quietly,

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. I understand more than you think."She said kindly, both of us looking out. "It must have been so hard for you to choose between Pitch and your friends." I looked over at her, genuinly surprised. But she kept her eyes ahead, a small smile on her lips. "I don't know what I would have done if I'd been put in your position, and it wasn't fair that you had to make that decision.

"Bunny...he's just.."

"Hurt."I finished for her, and she looked at me with a sympathetic smile. And, strangely, I softened a bit. At least one person understood.

"He'll come around, I'm sure of it. You two can't stay angry at each other for very long. You never could before."She teased, and I actually felt a small blush on my face, standing and turning away as she giggled lightly, the last remaining babytooth chippering away in what I assumed was laughter.

"Yeah, well...let's just...go save the world or something.."I muttered, and hurried down the hall.

_Bunnymund's p.o.v****_

It was Easter Sunday, and I'd followed the sound of a poor little anklebiter crying. When I found the little guy, I hid behind a bush and watched through a small hole, seeing that he hadn't found one egg yet. Just as I was about to toss a well-decorated egg his way, a rustle in the bushes across the small clearing caught both mine and the kid's attention. I prepared to use my wide arsenal of defense against whatever animal was about to attack, but instead of a coyote, wolf, or even bear, out stepped a girl.

The boy looked up at her with slight fear and curiosity, me just on edge, wondering if this girl was good or evil. She sure looked the latter, with a light grey skin, black cloak, and black hair that fell in small waves down to her shoulders, slightly silver as the light hit it in certain areas. Her eyes were a brilliant golden color, and they moved lightly as she looked from the child to his empty basket.

Then she did something that made my jaw drop, eyes go wide, and make the breath leave me for a bit. She smiled. But this wasn't just a smile. This was the brightest bloody smile I'd ever laid eyes on. It made her eyes sparkle like stars and crinkle a bit on the edges, and the entire forest seemed to open up to the sunlight. I was dazed like a kangaroo in New York.

"Do you want an Easter Egg?"She asked in a kind, smooth voice that stuck in my mind. The kid, no longer afraid, whiped his tears and nodded. She reached into her cloak and held out a small ball of shadow that, after a second, swirrled quickly and turned into a brightly-colored, rainbow Easter Egg. The kid was happy as a dog, dropping the egg into his basket and letting her ruffle his hair before running off like he'd just struck gold.

"Hope you don't mind, he just looked so sad."She said, looking directly at me. I froze for a moment, and then clumsily if not macho-ly stood up and hopped over to her, seeing her slight surprise as she took in my imposing frame.

"It-uh...well, I was just abouta do the same, but..."I tried to regain my cool in front of this odd girl, who I felt strangley drawn towards. Something in my chest was acting weird, and I couldn't place just what.

She laughed, a light little thing with a nice sound to it, and held out her hand.

"I'm Black."

"Actually, you're grey."

We looked at each other for a moment. And then the laughter that followed was the beginning of my best memories that I'd ever have, accompanied with the worst. I remembered it all as if it happened yesterday, and everytime I thought about it it made my fur stand up. I hated it. Hated that everytime I thought about it, about her, I couldn't be nearly as angry as I was hurt.

"She really is a looker, once you get past the whole 'scary-as-hell-when-she's-mad' thing." I turned quickly to the little frostbite and glared, instinctively pointing the end of my boomerang at his chest.

"What was that, Frostbite?"I threatened, and he gave me his annoying little smirk.

"Just confirming something."

"That would be?"

"You care about her."This time when he spoke, it was more serious. Mature, if you could even call 'im that. And as much as that irritated me, what was worse was that I had no comeback, leaving me standing there glaring at him.

"Anyway,"He mused, turning and flying away, "North wants us." I hate him.

_Black's p.o.v****_

"Easter."I looked over, surprised to hear Bunny speak up before anyone could talk, standing in front of the giant globe I'de been on not two days earlier. He held one hand out as he said seriously,

"Easter is only two days away, and if we can pull it off while keeping Pitch at bay then we can keep the children's hope just a bit longer."

"Sounds like a plan!"Toothina piped up cheerily, and I gave a nod that was so faint that I hoped no one picked up on it. North clapped his hands and summoned a bunch of yetis and elves, turning and rubbing his beard in thought.

"Sleigh might not be big enough-"

"Oh no."Bunny interrupted, shaking a finger. "This is my domain. We travel my way."

"Wait-"I was cut off as he tapped his foot twice on the ground and it gave way to a massive hole, all of us dropping down and tumbling.

"This is...not...proper...!"Toothina exclaimed between bumping into the walls of the hole. It took what felt like hours to finally tumble out of the hole, rolling into a soft green medow, one that brought back memories in waves, the familiar soft grass brushing against me as I stood, brushing myself off as the rest managed to their feet.

"That hurt more than I remember."I grumbled, looking up at the Warren. It was beautiful, with grass a bright, vibrant green with small lumps perfect for rolling down, little trees of eggs hanging down, the eggs popping out and running in their little feet to dive into different-colored pools of paint. It was so lively and bright that I almost didn't notice the disturbance in Bunny.

He was crouched, looking more like a rabbit now, with his ears twitching.

"What's wrong?"North asked, and Bunny stood up fully, then got into a fighting stance with two boomerangs, one in each hand, arms splayed out.

"Something's wrong. Follow me."He said, and I walked slowly, eyes focused forward and heart beating loudly. Bunny led the way, and I didn't notice that I was almost right next to him as we entered a low tunnel that led to a brightly lit clearing.

"On three."Bunny whispered, Santa pulling out two large, short swords, Jack with his staff at the ready, me swirrling a small shadow around my pointer finger, praying this wasn't Pitch.

"One."He said, and we took quiet steps forward. "Two." My body tensed, breath stopped, "THREE!"


	5. Like a Child

_Black's p.o.v****_

There we were. An ecclectic group consisting of a mutant rabbit with boomerangs, a hummingbird lady, a boy who could fly, a girl in a black cloak, and a crazy Russian with two swords in his hands. All charging out of a tunnel. Only to stop and quickly hide our weapons, me still with the shadow around my finger.

"..."The little girl in front of us could not have been more adorable if she were holding a puppy. She stood very close to the ground, with a mop of blonde hair that had bangs she had probably cut herself, with these wide brown eyes and adorable little pajamas.

"Sophie?"Jack asked, surprised.

"How did she get here?"Toothina asked, and North's eyes went wide, feeling around himself and muttering,

"The snowglobe!"

"North!"Bunnymund shouted, and the little Sophie's eyes immediatly began to water, her lip trembling. I smacked Bunny's chest with the back of my hand and scolded,

"Don't shout! You're scaring the poor little thing!" He looked at me dumbfounded, as Toothina flew up to the little girl.

"Oh, don't worry! I know what'll make you feel better!"She said happily, the little girl sniffling as Toothina opened up her hands and showed a tooth, getting all excited about it. "Look! It's an incisor! With little bits of gum and blood still on it!"

I slapped my face into my palm, and the little girl let out a whail, running quickly away and Toothina getting a hopelessly lost face.

"Gums and blood?"Jack and I chorused, looking at her incredously. Jack flew over to the girl and sat down on a rock, the girl looking at him with tears running down her face.

"When was the last time you guys actually hung out with kids?"Jack asked, and the others looked around, mouths open and defensive.

"We are busy making children happy!"North exclaimed helplessly, "We don't have time for...for..."He stopped himself, and I walked up to the little girl, smiling back at them and finishing,

"Children?" They gave each other guilty looks as I knelt down next to the girl, holding my hand open in front of her, her eyes wide in wonder. The shadow quickly spun around and, in a second, I turned it into a little, pink, stuffed bunny. She gasped as I handed it to her, squeezing it to her and spinning adorably around.

"See? Kids like soft, cute things."I said, and didn't realize that something happened. I was smiling. Smiling. I couldn't remember the last time I smiled...no. I could. It was here, actually, a day before...well... Oh well, the point was that I was smiling and helping a child, just like the old times. The good old times.

I looked up at Jack and asked,

"Hey, Frosty, what can you do with that thing?" He looked from it to me, and a devilish grin spread on his face. With a slight tap of his staff, pointing it at the others, a small sparkle shot out and hit every guardian. I watched as each of their eyes lit up, sparkling with wonder and, look at that, fun.

Especially Bunny. My eyes strayed to him for a moment, watching as his eyes became emerald again, no longer dark. They were bloody beautiful. With that thought, and a heavy blush, I turned back to the girl and asked,

"Do you want to paint Easter Eggs with me?" Her face grew bright and she nodded quickly, her hair falling in her face. I took her small little hand, the other clutching the stuffed bunny, and we took off running.

I started laughing sometime between scooping up eggs and dipping them in the paint, Sophie reaching a whole hand in and getting it all over her hair, looking like a rainbow mess but smiling like she'd just gotten a whole birthday cake to herself. I was busy dunking in the last of the eggs when I felt a little hand push my arm and looked over in time to see her sprinting off and shouting,

"Tag! Tag!" I paused a moment, hesitating. I hadn't played tag in...about nine hundred years. But something about the Warren was creeping in one me, making me forget what had happened up to thirty minuets ago, and live like the girl I used to be. And for the first time, I didn't fight it.

"I'll getcha!"I shouted, and took off running after the little girl. I tripped once or twice, following her behind trees and around hills. I was laughing my butt off, realizing how ridiculous I looked playing tag, but honestly didn't care. I was having fun, and by the far-off sounds, so was everyone else. I heard a 'hohoho' off in the distance, saw a streak of ice, and heavy laughter.

"Come back here you!"I called out to Sophie, who just looked back and giggled wildly.

_Bunnymund's p.o.v****_

"Oy, where's the girls?"I asked North, as he said trying to comically paint little decoration on eggs hundreds of times smaller than him. He stood and looked around, raising an eyebrow.

"Not sure-" But he was cut off, because at the same time that he spoke, two loud giggles were heard, and we looked over to see Black and Sophie rolling down a hill in front of us. They rolled to a stop before another hill, Black's cloak wrapped around them as they sat, tangled, both laughing.

I just stood there, eyes going a bit wider as I saw something I hadn't seen in hundreds of years. And it had the same effect it had on me the first time I saw it. It lit up her face, ridding it of all the shadows and darkness and creating a light that lit up the whole bloody Warren, her eyes glittering and her laugh echoing as the tiny anklebiter held the toy Black had made her. The way she looked at that little kid, and how she was laughing now...maybe the old sheila I knew was still in there somewhere.

"Well what do you know!"North boomed, and I smiled, a hand on my hip as the little girl quickly stood and ran.

"Hey! I tagged you!"Black protested, but the little girl stopped halfway up the hill and shook her head, saying breathily,

"I tagged you back!"

"No fair!"Black laughed, standing up and brushing herself off.

"That's the rules of the game."I corrected her, and we made eyecontact for the first time in awhile that wasn't hostile.

We stood in awkward silence for a moment, until a familiar, devilish grin spread on her face and she quickly reached a hand forward, lightly shoving me. I was just about to protest when she shouted,

"Tag! You're it!" I pause a moment, until a feeling rose inside me.

"Nu-uh, ya gumby, not for long!"

With my renound speed, I went after her, jumping across and around trees and hills. I had to give her one thing, she was sneaky. At one point she hit up in a tree, and only jumped down when I'd passed her far away. It was harder to catch up to her than I thought, remembering that I'd taught her a thing or two about avoiding a fast opponent a long time ago, now regretting it.

"Getting slow in your old age?"She called back, which only inspired me to go faster and catch up to her right at the top of a hill. Apparently, I overestimated my speed, because instead of stopping I tripped, causing both of us to tumbled down the hill. I pulled her closer to me, taking most of the hits until we rolled to the bottom of the hill, realizing that I was laughing and she was laughing with me, us landing with her on top of me, my back covered in grass.

I looked down at her, pushing herself lightly up from my chest, laughing and smiling brighter than anything I'd ever seen. It literally brightened her face. I took a moment, taking a breather with small laughs between breaths. Crikey, was she really this beautiful before? Nah, something had to have changed, I would have noticed something like this. Like how her hair fell cutely in front of her face, how her eyes actually sparkled, and when she looked at me that feeling I got...

Memories passed before me as I looked at her. Bright days spent running through here, or teaching her tai chi, or how to throw a boomerang. Trying to focus on painting the eggs, but when she got bored there was no way to stay focused, instead having challenges of strength or speed. Trying to see who could paint the most eggs. Was it really that long ago that we were friends? That nothing was complicated, there was just upholding the hope of children and debts on boomerangs? It seemed like not that long ago.

And we looked at each other for a long time, just laying there. I saw a tinge of a darker grey on her cheeks, and felt my own fur grow red. Crikey, this wasn't good. This couldn't be good, not with my heart beating this fast. I propped myself up on my elbows, scooting back a bit as Black looked up at me, and realized that I was leaning a bit too close down to her, a hand on her arm...

"AHHHHHHHH!" We jumped as a streak of ice shot across our vision, North going sliding on it over a pond of blue paint. Black laughed, standing up quickly and pulling me up behind her. She looked up at me and smiled, all of the past bitterness and hurt gone.

"Bet I can get North back safely before you can."She challenged, and I took off ahead of her. "Hey! Not fair!"

_-A few hours later-_

A cold gust of wind blew my hair back, and I looked up from painting a small flower on the egg cradled in my hand to see a snow-white mop of hair floating a few centimeters above the ground, staff in his hands as he gave me a small, happy grin.

"Hey there Frostbite."I greeted him, and Jack fell to his butt on the ground, leaning forward in a way that only children could when they wanted to talk with someone.

"Hey, only Bunny calls me that!"He teased, and I raised an eyebrow. It was true that, spending time around him again, I felt like things were getting back to normal somehow, in some twisted sort of way. I might have heard him call Jack that, or maybe I was just starting to talk likke him. That made me shiver.

"Sorry, Jack. So what are you doing? Weren't you playing with Sophie?"I asked, changing the subject, Jack toying around with a snowflake on the tip of his pinkie, spinning it around.

"Yeah, but then she saw Bunny and was all 'Easter Bunny, hop hop hop!', so I let the kangaroo run around with her a bit."He explained, and I stifled a laugh. He looked up, smiling wider, and said, "Yeah, it's hilarious seeing the big bad Bunny hopping around with the little kid on his head. I've never actually seen him smile like this before, it's funny!" And while he had a point, Bunny's smile something like a treasure for those who knew him, I shook my head and laughed out,

"No, not that. I've never heard anyone call him a 'kangaroo' before!" In a few seconds, we were both laughing, me barely able to hold the egg in my hand as I shook. "I'll have to remember that one."I sighed, as we both calmed down. Jack moved his arm and blew the snowflake away, the flake breaking into a bunch of different ones and swirrling around like they were ballerinas.

"So how did you meet old Cottontail anyway?"Jack asked, and I leaned on the tree, memory going back to that warm Easter Sunday. It didn't seem so long ago now, with everything so...normal. So like old times.

"I made a kid an egg. He hadn't found any and was crying, so I...helped him, I guess. I hated seeing little kids sad, they were cuter happy. After the little guy ran off, out jumped this giant rabbit and, after getting over that fact that this giant, intimidating, Australian rabbit was holding a tiny pink basket of eggs, we kind of...well..became friends.

"At that point I'd known Sandy from his work with Pitch and North after this whole 'an intruder is breaking into that house' fiasco, so it nice to have another friend."I finished, and Jack tilted his head to the side, confusion in his face.

"Wait, so if you were all friends, then why go with Pitch?" I cringed a little, looking guiltily down at the egg. Jack must have seen my reaction, because he quickly took back, "Uh, I mean, not to pry or anything, I mean you're with us now, right?" I looked up slowly, at him, thinking about what he said. With them. What I'd tried to tell myself not to do.

A smile slowly spread on my face.

"Yeah."I agreed, and Jack brightened up.

"Cool! So tell me, what was Bunny like a long time ago?"

_-That night-_

"Remember to brush sweetie! Sweet dreams."Toothina said kindly, floating down and giving me a kiss on the forehead.

"I will, night Tooth."I smiled, and she turned and flew off down the dirt-like hallway with Sophie in tow, all of us undergrown in a burrowed home that Bunnymund had made for himself, complete with guestrooms. I turned, walking past the doors of the others. From North's room I heard a snore so powerful that it actually shook the dirt on the ceiling, causing some to come floating down.

I shook my head and sighed, walking past Jack's door that already had a layer of webbed frost over it for temperature control.

I knew the way to my room by heart, though I hadn't been there in hundreds of years. It was situated around a corner, the first door on the left with a purple border. I stood in front of it, tracing a finger along the grey B carved into the front sloppily. It was obviously not Bunny's carpentry. One day, after arguing with him over whether or not I could put a nightlight in the room, Bunny had said that the room wasn't mine, and that it didn't have my name on it. Needless to say, I fixed that right away.

I smiled at the memory, accompanied with the teasings about being the borderline master of all shadows, and yet I was, ironically, afraid of the dark. It wasn't my fault, it was just a fear that nagged in the back of my head. I never really told anyone the explination, because I didn't know it myself, but that didn't stop me from getting the nightlight.

Before I stepped inside, I wondered for a moment if the room would have been stripped of everything that might have held a memory of me, including the nightlight. I wouldn't blame him if it were, I would have done the same if I were in his position... I pushed open the door and slowly walked inside, seeing the darkness of the room as a comfortingly familiar atmosphere filled me. It was almost as if the air had waited for me to return, filling the room with the smell of dirt, flowers, and paint that brought back fond feelings and memories.

Nothing was changed. The bed was still pushed against the far wall, with grey covers and purple swirrls along the wooden posts. A dresser was against the wall to my left, empty as it had always been and yet perfectly preserved. The discovery was uplifting, until I remembered one thing. When I had left for the last time, I had forgotten the nightlight, leaving it in the wall. Needless to say, the battery could not withstand hundreds of years, and in the wall was a burn-out, egg-shaped nightlight, black and dusty, a remaining piece of what my life had once been.

And all of a sudden the room was a lot more menecing. The darkness creeped across the floors and blocked corners from view, shieding them in darkness, hiding who-knows-what. Though the sensible part of me knew that nothing sinister could possibly be lurking in here, the child part of my imagination created beings so terrifying, hiding within the corners and under the bed, beings that only a child who had grown up with Pitch could create, that I immediatly froze, palms sweating and body stiff, heart pounding in my chest.

The hairs on the back of my neck stood up, my spine tingled like I was being watched, and an idea immediatly popped into my mind. Again, my sensibility told me that it was a ridiculous idea and that I should buck up and go to bed, that I was absolutely exauhsted from the days work and that if I didn't sleep then tomorrow would not be a fun day to cross me. The childish part, the part that I had crushed until recently, said that if I was with someone older than me then I would be protected from the darkness and what hid beneath it.

The child won, as they usually do over sensibility, and I slowly crept backwards, keeping my face to the darkness out of paranoia and then quickly shutting the door. I turned, seeing a door diagnal from mine just a few steps down the hall. It had dark brown borders and artistic paintings all over it, done only by the best artist I'd ever met. I cursed myself for being so childish and timid, hesitantly taking slow and shaky steps towards his door, blushing at my ridiculousness.

I really did feel just like a child as I slowly turned the doorknob, trying to make no sound at all as I pushed the heavy door open, inch by timid inch, until I was just able to slide in and shut it slowly behind me. The room was almost as dark as my own, underground with no windows, and once again I froze, fear removing all sensible thought from my mind. As my eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness, the corners still hidden wickedly, I saw a bed pressed against the far wall, a familiar lump in the blankets and ears slightly down on a head that poked above the blankets, a back to me.

Nerves and a rapid heartbeat followed me as I slowly tip-toed towards the guardian, scolding myself inwardly. He wouldn't want to be woken up, and his anger would probably just send me right back to my room. I'd learned before that he hated being woken up early, especially right before Easter, but right now none of that was doing a very sucessful job in stopping me from going right up to his bedside, feeling very much like a child.

In a slow movement, I inched my hand forward and placed it on soft, blue fur.

"...Bunnymund?"I whispered, not wanting to be too loud and startle him. He grunted, and I bit my lip hard, worried. "...Bunny?"I asked, and when he rolled over I quickly removed my hand, placing my arms back under my cloak and standing there, feeling very awkward and embarrased, face heated up and looking down, unable to make eye contact as Bunny opened his own, emerald green eyes slowly, one-by-one.

"Oy?...Black, is tha' you?"He asked groggily, and I looked away in humiliation, trying to find what to say and coming up blank, settling for just nodding curtly. I heard a rustle of blankets before Bunny asked, "What are ya doin' here? Something wrong?" I shook my head, still unable to speak, wanting very much to leave but at the same time not to be alone in the dark.

"Then why're ya here? Easter is a day!"He asked, and I hung my head, stomach tight and waiting for the onslaught of...however he would react. But leaving was not an option, and neither was standing here like an idiot.

"...The nightlight burnt out."I admitted in a quiet voice, looking down at the ground.

"Hm?...Oh. Oh right, I uh...I haven't been in there since...well..."He stumbled over his words, and I looked away. There was a silence in which I wished he would just send me away already so I could find some place outside or even with Tooth to go. Thinking about it, I didn't know why I just didn't go to Tooth in the first place. Sure, Bunny was closer, but something else seemed to pull me to this room, to him. The same strange pull I felt the first time I'd seen him.

"After all this time, yer still scared a the dark?"Bunny asked, and I looked shyly at him, his face unreadable and almost sympathetic, before I nodded and went back to observing the floor. There was another rustle of fabric, and then, "Well, don't just stand there ya ankle biter, get in."

I looked over at him in surprise, not expecting him to actually say yes. He had moved over and pulled the covers back in front of him, a warm-looking spot in the bed seemingly much safer than standing here. Something in my gut, though, began to feel weird, and my spine tingled differently now than before, my chest tightening at the thought of...

A thump behind me threw away any and all integrity I had left, and I quickly jumped into the bed with a little squeal, huddled against warm, soft fur. A hand went to my back and an arm wrapped around me, comfort and safety wrapping around me like a blanket, my muscles relaxing just a bit. A soothing, calm, accented voice rumbled in my ear,

"Calm down now sheila,"His voice low, a nice feeling coming from this man, "Just a late egg hopping in from getting painted."

I nodded, even though I could feel myself shaking from childish fear.

"Crikey, you're shakin' like a leaf!"Bunnymund noticed, but I just buried my face a bit more in his chest, just below his chin, still calming down from my highly irrational and ironic fear of the darkness around us, protected by him, and yet still sensing the danger beyond us. "Just...just calm down now, it's a'right."Bunny tried, obviously not used to seeing me like this.

In a moment, I felt a hand on my lower back, tracing circles that immediatly sent a shiver up my spine, but at the same time managed to relax me. Another hand pressed my head softly to his chest, a wet, cold nose nuzzling the top of my head and a strong leg barely touching my foot, as if he were wrapping himself around me, like a...a guardian.

"Shhh.."He whispered, his low tone soft, "There's nothing here that can gethcha', ya anklebiter."

"I'm not a child."I whispered back, feeling very foolish for saying that, as I was currently terrified, having to sleep near someone older than me because of the dark. But he didn't tease me for it, instead running a hand down my hair, my shaking slowly stopping, stilling me.

"'Course ya are. And I'll protect ya."The promise, in my sleep-deprived, terrified mind, was all I needed as I lay my head on his chest, the fur acting as a sort of pillow.

A steady 'thump...thump' of his heart lulled me, closing my eyes and listening, Bunnymund protectively guarding me, the darkness receeding as I fell quietly and silently to sleep, the sound of his chest a lullabye...

"Still not a child..."I whispered, right before falling asleep.


	6. Choice

_Black's p.o.v***_

"Oy, anklebiter, wakey wakey!"I yelped and fell out of the bed, my face breaking my fall. Groaning and annoyed as all get-out, I pushed myself into a sitting position and rubbed my forehead, glaring up at Bunny as he walked over to the door, an air of anticipation about him.

"What's the big idea you gumby!"I shouted at him, and he opened up the door, looking over at me quickly and saying,

"Easter Sunday, gotta finish a few eggs before transportation...and you called me 'gumby'."He teased, and I blushed, shouting in protest,

"Did not!" He just gave me an irritatingly smug look and I stood, the memories of last night coming back and making my stomach to an odd flip.

Ignoring it, I stormed forward, crankey about being woken up so 'kindly'. As I passed him, arms crossed under my cloak, I mummbled quietly,

"Kangaroo."

"What did ya just call me?!"He asked, running after me I walked out of the burrow, into the Warren where the guardians were already causing a rucus.

"Easter Bunny, hop hop hop!"Sophie exclaimed, running up to Bunny as he exited the burrow, the sour look on his face immediatly peeling off as she jumped up and down in front of him. I watched as his smile slowly melted back onto his face, eyes squinting a bit as he ruffled the girl's hair.

"Hey there, anklebiter."He said kindly, making me smile a bit before saying,

"Her parent's will be worried if we don't get her back soon."

"Don't worry, I know her house!"Jack exclaimed, flying over and picking up Sophie, causing her to giggle in excitement. I walked over to her and smiled, reaching in my cloak and pulling out a shadow, showing it to her. Her eyes grew wide in amazement as the shadows swirrled in my hand, and then, in a moment, revealed the little stuffed bunny.

"Don't forget this."I said, winking, and she quickly took it and hugged it to herself. She leaned forward and placed a quick kiss on my forehead, my eyes growing wide in surprise, a warm feeling filling me. Jack turned and flew away, purposely dropping a snowball on Bunny's head and making him shout after the Winter sprite, me just standing there and looking after them.

"Feels good to do good, no?"North asked, a hand on my shoulder. I sighed and said airily,

"I almost forgot how it felt to make a child smile."

"Alright!"Bunny announced, hopping up to us with a serious look on his face, "Enough jabba'! We've got three hundred bloody eggs to paint in a few hours, get to it ya gumbys!" Everyone quickly scattered, me heading over to the blue paint pond and helping the smaller eggs jump in, sending a shadow in to fish them out when it was time.

I had painted what felt like five hundred eggs before I felt a violent shove from behind, going flying forward and landing hard into the lake, the splash almost as loud as when I resurfaced and screamed,

"BUNNNYYYYY!" I heard a loud laugh from the shore and shook the blue paint from my face as I saw him standing there, smiling triumphantly.

"That was for the kangaroo jab, mate."He said, and I huffed, snaking my fingers below the surface of the water and shooting five shadows from the lake, wrapping around Bunnymund. "Oy!"He shouted out, as I pulled him into the paint with me. He resurfaced and shook like a dog, me laughing and shouting,

"That's for calling me an anklebiter!"

He lunged at me, but I dodged and swam quickly to land, hopping up and holding out a hand, a wave of shadows spinning around me quickly, removing any and all paint from me before dissapearing. Bunny climbed from the paint, shaking himself clean and glaring at me.

"You started it."I defended, and he was about to retort when something horrible pricked at my senses. I froze, muscles tightening as I listened and felt the atmostphere for the disturbance.

Bunny saw the look on my face and immediatly became serious, walking up to me and asking,

"What's wrong?" I shook my head and turned, seeing the sky become black, shadows streaching over it like ink spilled on paper. My eyes grew wide and my stomach fell, one name on my lips.

"Pitch."

Before I could protest, Bunny sped ahead of me, only stopping to call back in a command,

"Stay here!" And before a word left my mouth, he was gone.

But I wasn't alone.

I felt his presence before I saw him, his hand spinning me around. I expected a plethora of things. Anger. Fury, more like it. Pain inflicted upon me. Evil words. Something along those lines. But what I got was so much worse. So, so much worse.

He pulled me to him and gripped me tight, a quick embrace that immediatly killed me. My heart broke and I felt my mind begin to fight the war I thought I had ended when I came here, tearing itself in two between the cause I had been fighting for and the one I wanted to fight for.

"Oh Black, I was so worried."He whispered, then held me at arm's length, face serious and dark, "Now let's get you out of here before those idiots get past the nightmares."Nightmares? They were here? I opened my mouth to protest, and for a reason that I hated myself for, I stopped. Pitch was evil. He killed Sandy. I hated him. _Hated him._ And I loved my friends.

But I couldn't. The image of Bunny's backlash on Pitch was both wonderful and terrible at the same time. I couldn't...just couldn't... He was my brother. Right?

"...Yes..."I whispered, and the sound of my heart breaking was audible. Pitch turned, a nightmare appearing out of shadow, and pulled me up in front of him. Out of reflex and shame, I pulled my hood over my face.

"Hurry now, we wont want to miss the light show...or lackthereof."Before, I would have thought that tone was happy, and would have love it. Now, it was malevolent, laced with pure evil. I hated it.

The nightmare lifted and flew quickly, the Warren passing below me as well as images of eggs breaking and cracking, the horrible black horses stomping and ripping. I wanted to look away, but soon a clearing opened up at the front of the Warren, the nightmare flying low enough to alert one guardian, making him look up mid-toss. For a moment, a horrible, painful moment, he saw.

And in that terrible moment, I saw all the betrayal and hurt come flooding back, the anger twisting in his eyes. The smile was dead. The light was dead. And I had killed it.

"Wonderful."Pitch sneered. I faced forward and hung my head. Terrible.

_-Antarctica- Jack's p.o.v****_

All of it was destroyed. The eggs hadn't even had a chance to reach the children, leaving them dissapointed and their belief shattered. All because of me. My eyes teared up as I flung my arm around, the staff throwing a massive mound of snow away from me, mindless anger taken out on the freezing cold that I didn't feel. I should have been there. I shouldn't have taken these memories, and above all I should have saved the babyteeth.

But I didn't. Bunny was right, I was just a kid. I wasn't a guardian.

"Why?!"I screamed, throwing my face up at the sky where the moon shone brightly, Manny no doubt having seen everything. "Why choose me?! Why choose me when...when I ruin everything?! When no one...no one-"

"Believes in you?" I spun around, staff held protectively in front of me, the slimy, dark voice belonging to the shadow that stepped out from behind a large ice mound I had made when I landed, fleeing the others in shame. I grit my teeth, anger and tears welling up in my eyes.

"Pitch! What are you doing here?"I spat, and then, as he moved a few steps forward, saw a second figure, one that I had been explained to had betrayed us against everything we had done for her. I narrowed my eyes and spat, "You."

Pitch blocked her from view, but not before I saw the look of utter shame cross her face. I couldn't say she deserved it. Something was wrong about it. Something in her eyes, in her stance, that wasn't quite normal. Something was wrong with her, but I didn't get time to think about it. Pitch took up my attention, walking slowly, face calm.

"The same thing as you are, my dear boy."I cringed as he called me that, but curiosity got the better of me.

"What's that supposed to mean?"I asked, and Pitch stopped, looking at me with sad eyes.

"I know, Jack Frost. What it's like for no one to believe in you."He said quietly. Normally, I would look at Pitch and know immediatly not to trust a word he said, but something about this...about how he looked, how his voice wavered, I had a feeling that at this moment, he was telling the truth.

"It's empty, isn't it? People just walk right through you, no respect when you're around, no one to answer when you call out to them. It's lonely, and what would any of the guardians know about it?"His voice was bitter, and he turned, hand grasping the ice, "People worship them! And why not us? Why can't we join together, to make the world know who we are?" Pitch's eyes flicked to me, and he began walking forward.

Out of reflex, I tightened my grip on the staff. He stopped, taking it in for a moment, before looking at me with a smile that made me cringe.

"We could do wonderful things together, you and I. Think about it: A world who knows your name. Who knows us."He prompted. And part of me wanted to believe him. Wanted to go with him. The sincere way he said these things, the belief of it in his eyes.

And I knew why Black went with him. I knew how he had kept a girl like her under his spell for so long. And I felt sad for her. I glared at Pitch, anger rising in me not just over his actions, but over what he had done to Black. She could have been a guardian. She could have stayed and been happy with us, but Pitch poisoned her mind just like he was trying to do with me.

And I wouldn't let him.

"You want people to fear you! And that's not what I want."I spat at him, and in a second his kind face turned to one of rage. A darkness came over him and his eyes narrowed. His hand shot out and in it was babytooth, squirming and chirping. For a second I saw Black's face go to one of shock and horror, but instead of stepping up she shrank back.

This wasn't the Black I knew.

"Let her go!"I shouted, and Pitch's eyes narrowed evilly, squeezing his hand as the little bird squealed out in pain, my hands gripping the staff tighter, frost covering it.

"The Staff for the bird."Pitch said, and I looked at him in shock. Protectively, I held the staff to me, but one more loud chirp from babytooth made me think twice. I was torn, looking between the innocent hummingbird caught in the evil grasp of Pitch, reminding me very much of the grip Black was in, and my staff, the only protection I had against Pitch.

But I couldn't pass up a second chance to save the innocent little thing. I tossed the staff to him, his free hand catching it and a horrible, twisted smile forming over his face. My stomach dropped as he flung babytooth in the air, me barely running backwards and catching her in time. I gasped, feeling the snow beneath my foot give way and me falling backwards.

"No!"I cried out, reaching for anything. I couldn't fly, couldn't form a layer of snow benieth us. All I could do was protectively hold Babytooth to my chest as the black cavenfloor slammed into my back, the breath leaving me as well as a twisted, painful groan, the pain ripping through my back and neck, frantic chirps emitting from my hands.

A laugh above me and a loud snap were the last things I heard for awhile, not knowing that my staff had fallen, broken, next to me. Not knowing that my memories were still in my pocket. Unaware that Babytooth was trying to wake me. Not knowing that this incident had, for somebody, been the last straw.

_-Pitch's Cave- Black's p.o.v***_

I stood in the shadows, Pitch's glee only growing as five lights lit up the globe in front of us. Somewhere, probably the North Pole, three guardians were watching the same thing we were, somber and betrayed. Jack was in a ditch.

I was ready to fix all that I had done.

"Four."Pitch mused happily, jumping onto the globe and, in a sick sort of dance, was leaping and snuffing out the lights. "Three. Two. One!" He ground his foot into the last light... And when he removed it, it still shone. I let out a breath, hope filling my chest as Pitch tried again and again to snuff it out, only to have the brave little light continue to glow.

That was all I needed. One last child to believe. Pitch's cowl grew dark for a moment, until another one of those horrible smiles crept onto his face. He jumped from the globe and walked over to me, slowly pushing back my hood and placing his hands on my face.

"Let's pay the little tyke a visit?"He mused. How had I blinded myself this badly, to have, at one point, gone along with this.

"Let's."I agreed. Once we were on the nightmare, soaring through the sky, an army of angry, storm-looking black shadows following behind us, covering the grounds below with nightmare, fear, and pain, roaring around the globe like angry tidal waves about to destroy anything in their path. I rode in front of Pitch, looking down on a snowy town filled with sleeping children.

Children that I would start protecting.

"It's here. I will go, you wait for the guardians."I advised, and Pitch brushed my hair from my face as I looked up at him. He smiled at me, and there was a sadness to the situation that only I saw. Pitch was my older brother. Family was supposed to stick together, but he had torn ours apart. Torn us apart with his decisions. I wasn't about to let my own decisions become his, as well. I turned and fell off the horse, plummeting down until I created a small cloud of shadow to stifle my fall, leading me down and to a house.

A familiar house. When had I been here? Oh yes, that's right. This was the house with the brilliant little boy, the house were Bunny was chased by that greyhound and everyone got hit with sleep sand on accident. The first time I had been here I was betraying my friends. Now, I was helping them. I looked through the boy's window, only to see him kneeling on his bed, talking to the pink stuffed bunny that I had given Sophie.

"Okay, I'm getting older now, and a lot of my friends think you don't exist."He said, trying to sound as serious as a child his age could. A sadness crept inside me, thinking of all the children without hope, and with nightmares.

"Sad, isn't it?"I looked up, startled by Jack as he floated next to me, his staff fully intact though I had seen Pitch snap it in two.

"Jack!"I whispered, eyes wide. He looked into the room, then back at me.

"How is it that kids can see you?"He asked suddenly, and I raised my eyebrows, looking back in at the child and shrugging.

"Happiness."I said, though I didn't usually think about my real purpose too much, the reason Manny had created me. It had become such an integral part of my life, and then I'd tried to stifle it so much that it had never been on my mind. "I create happiness, that's my purpose...well, it was."I whispered quietly.

"You have to do something, anything, to make me know that you're real, that it wasn't just a dream, okay? Now, as in..right now."The boy begged the toy. And then and idea popped into my mind. I faced Jack seriously and said,

"Jack, you want kids to see you?" He looked at me in slight surprise, but I went on. "Then make them. Show them. This is the last kid who believes, don't let him be let down right now or you'll never know what it's like for a child to look right at you and believe in you. Show him it wasn't a dream." Jack looked from me to the boy, who was looking desperatly at the toy.

"What about...you...and Pitch-"

"Jack."I said, grabbing the collar of his hoodie and making him look me in the eye, my heart pounding and blood pumping, "Don't let him stop believing in Bunny."I begged, not wanting to think about what has already happened to him now. Something like recognition flashed in Jack's eyes, and he nodded. I turned and jumped up to my cloud of shadows.

"What about you?"Jack called, and I slowly faced him again, determination in my voice and courage in my chest.

"I'm going to protect the children."


	7. Black Rises

_Thank you all for your amazing support of this story. I hope you'll also like reading the SEQUEL! Gasp! Yes, the sequel will be up as soon as possible. Once again thank you so much, love you guys 3_

_-Burgess- Bunnymund's p.o.v****_

I knew it. I didn't want to, but I knew it. The hurt wasn't any lessened by this fact, but I had to admit it. Part of me once thought that she would never change, that she would be on Pitch's side forever and that we weren't important enough to fight for. But...that part had been quieted when we were in the Warren. She fooled me pretty bloody good with that smile, that laugh. It was all fake, it had to have been. Or else she wouldn't have gone with Pitch, she wouldn't have let Easter been destroyed.

And yet part of me still felt that not all of it could have been fake. It just seemed so real. She couldn't have faked last night, when she looked like she was about to pass out from fear, seeking my comfort, mine out of everyones. I couldn't have been fake.

But fooling myself was how we got into this situation. We had trusted her again, and look what happened: Toothina couldn't fly. Jack was gone, shamed even though it wasn't his fault, out at who-knows-where possibly in danger. North was quickly losing his strength, the sleigh ride even worse than normal, lurching and dipping when it shouldn't. But, worst of all of it...

I was one bloody foot tall. Sure, the others lose their powers, but I shrink?! Bloody hell! Next time I see her, I swear...

"Crash landing!"North interrupted my thoughts, and less than a second after his less-than-helpful warning, the sleigh crashed into a street, sending me flying backwards and smacking into the side door, carrots dancing in front of my eyes for a moment as a loud screeching sound announced our entrance.

"Jack!"Toothina exclaimed, jumping out of the sleigh weakly, North following. Yeah, just leave the bloody plush-doll to fend for himself! I grumbled, moving across the floor of the sleigh, listening as I tried to hop and reach the top of the side of the sleigh.

"Wow, it wasn't a dream!"A familiar voice exclaimed. Jamie's voice, the reason we rushed here as fast as the sleigh could go. The last child who believed, and Pitch's main and final target. More child-like voices followed, each more excited than the last, and I had to give Frostbite props for finding more kids to believe in us.

Unfortunatly, five didn't seem to be enough.

"Where's Bunny?"Jack asked, actual concern in his voice.

"Well...we all took Easter pretty hard...Bunny worst of all."North said, just as I ungracefully catapulted myself from the sleigh, rolling hard on the ground before making my way to my feet, angrily scratching my head.

"Thanks for the hand."I mused sarcastically, walking strongly forward as I could looking like a pre-schoolers pet.

I tried to ignore the looks everyone was giving me, focusing instead on the quickly-darkening sky above us. As we'd flown, we saw what most would think were black stormclouds, but we knew better than that. It was Pitch, and he was close, I could feel it. Jack took one look at all of us, and then bumped his head against his staff.

"We're officially doomed."He gave up, which made my fur bristle. I hopped up and shouted,

"Hey there, Snowflake, don't count us out that quick!"Everyone's attention turned to me as I pointed to Jack with a distubingly adorable paw, determination and immediate danger apparent, "We're Guardians, and while you might not be too keen on being one of us, it's all of our jobs to protect children, mate. We might not be at a hundred percent, but at least we're gonna try."

Jack held my stare for a second, and then the little icecube straightened up, looking down and nodding.

"I knew you were real! You weren't lying, Jack!"Jamie exclaimed, giving me wide, excited eyes, along with the rest of his little anklebiters. I took a moment to process two things: The kid could see Jack, all of them. And...

"He..made you believe in me?"I asked, shocked, as I looked up at Jack, who awkwardly held onto the staff and looked away.

"...Aww, isn't that..._touching."_ I looked up, gritting my teeth and hopping in front of the kids as the shadows around us began to pulsate and twist, moving and transforming as they peeled themselves from the buildings. The rest of the Guardians walked up next to me, pushing the kids protectively behind us. Nightmares walked slowly from the alleys of houses, heads low and manes shaking, eyes wide and blood red as they tensed, prepared for a war.

As if the army of nightmares as far as the eye could see wasn't bad enough, there were creatures peeling from the building and sewage, shadows that were barely an outline of a human, only a torso, arms, and a head with long, sharp-looking fingers reaching out, all of them meshing together in a sea of shadows. I tried to put on a brave face, but dread sunk in my chest. We could fight as hard as we wanted, but without our full strength...Pitch's plan was going to work.

Speaking of the ugly devil, the sea parted, Pitch riding up on the back of a nightmare with a sinister look in his eyes, mouth twisted in a victorious sneer with glints of evil in his eyes.

"What a sad sight to behold,"He mused mockingly, me wanting to slap that look right off his face, "The once-mighty Guardians, reduced to this? It's almost too pitiful to look at!" Out of the corner of my eye, I saw North try to lift his swords, only to shake and immediatly drop his hands, Tooth not able to fly for more than a second or two.

This only seemed to bring Pitch a sick sense of joy, throwing his head back and laughing, leaning over towards us and asking in a demeaning, self-righteous tone,

"The almighty Guardians. Your sole purpose is to protect these children of the Earth...but who protects the Guardians, I wonder?" My stomach tightened in anger, ready to take on the whole bloody army myself. I opened my mouth to say something, anything, but before I could someone's pant leg brushed past me, and I looked up, only to have my jaw drop and eyes go wide.

"I do."Jack said in a brave tone, shoulders squared and chest out, holding onto the staff with one firm hand. Looking up at him now, I saw something that I never thought I'd see in the kid. His eyebrows were furrowed, jaw clenched, lips in a thin and determined line. His eyes were narrowed and darker than usual, chin tilted up with his hair blowing back from his face. The kid impressed me, standing in front of us, facing an army of hundreds, with a bravery and maturity that I'd never seen in him before.

Who knew, Snowflake?

"Aww-"

"I do!"A small voice cut off Pitch, as Jamie walked past me and stood beside Jack, an identical look of determination on his face. I looked around, something inside me tightening, seeing as all of Jamie's friends followed his example and straightened up, eyes growing dark and jaws clenching, stepping up beside Jamie and Jack, like their own little army of anklebiters.

"I do."

"I do."

"I do!"

"I do!" They all called out, and I swear I've never seen a group of braver kids. Each standing there like they could take on that army by themselves, prepared to protect _us._

A look of amusement and, benieth it, irritation crossed Pitch's face, his shoulders stiff as he spat like venom,

"Oh, is this-"

"I do."

I froze, a chill going up my spine as my breath caught. A familiar voice cut Pitch off, and everyone turned in unison, seeing a girl I never thought I'd see again. She walked with a power I'd never seen before, her shoulders back and cloak billowing out around her. The look on her face seemed like it was containing a rage that made the air around us cold, her hood down and revealing narrowed and angry eyes, hair falling over her shoulders and blowing back as she walked powerfully forward, passing through our group until she stood amoungst the children and Jack, everyone silent for a moment.

She was here... It wasn't fake.

_Black's p.o.v****_

Blood pumped in my veins, my heart beat fast and angry, muscles tensed and eyes trained forward on the face of the man that I owed all of my pain to. His own face was a mixture of confusion, hurt, and anger, eyes darting between me and the children, mouth hanging open with his eyebrows drawn close, lines of confusion and frustration on his forehead, at a loss for words until, finally, he snapped.

"Black! What...what are you doing?!"He shouted, but I stood firm, amoung the children I would protect.

"I'm doing what I was meant to, Pitch. Protecting the happiness of children. Protecting my friends."I stood straighter and spat, "I dare you to stop me."

He reeled back as if I'd just smacked him, eyes wide and furious. The shadows and nightmares were looking around, some still, as if waiting for the command to attack either of us. For everyone's sake, I hoped they were going to obey me. Even with the children and their belief, there was no way I could fight off and army of this size, I wasn't nearly strong enough. He breathed quickly and deeply, then shouted so loud that a vein popped out in his forehead,

"How DARE YOU! I gave you EVERYTHING! I PROTECTED YOU! I am your family, I am everything you had! And THIS! THIS is how you treat me?! They-"

"They are my family."I said solidly, hands in fists under my cloak. "You might have tried to blind me from that fact. You might have suceeded at one point. But now I see, Pitch. You weren't my family, because family protects each other, family doesn't use each other. Family doesn't hurt each others friends or turn their backs on the children they protect. These people are my family, and I will protect them with every ounce of life I have left."

There was a shift in the air, tension, as if things were about to snap and absolute chaos would break out, splitting everything in two and waging a war that seemed imminent as both groups stood and looked at the other without fear or weakness. Pitch was visibly shaking, eyes bearing holes in mine, veins popping up all over his head and neck, shadows streaching up around him. I'd never seen his anger reach a point like this, and for a moment I wondered how we were going to fight this...

"YOU AND THE GUARDIANS?"He shouted, "HA! I'd like to see you try! There are no children who believe in them, they have no powers! No strength! No believers!" I smiled and a calm came over me, cocking my head to the side, towards the children.

"Actually, we have five. I think that's pleanty, how about you guys?"I asked nonchalantly, and they all looked from eachother to the guardians. After a moment of silence, smiles slowly creeped onto their faces, their eyes lighting up.

"I believe."Jamie agreed, and something happened. Something happened to all of them. A soft, golden glow wrapped itself around them, and from that glow golden tendrils snaked themselves towards the guardians, wrapping around them and causing an iridescent glimmer, lighting up their bodies and eyes. North looked around for a second, and then took in a massive breath, raising the swords above his head and shouting out,

"YEAHHHHH!"

I laughed and felt a relief fill me, seeing Tooth rocket into the air with babytooth, their powers returning to them.

"C'mon c'mon c'mon..."I heard, and looked down... I paused, trying to process what I was seeing below me. After a second of awkward silence, I asked,

"..Bunnymund?" He looked up at me, slightly defensive. "...You're adorable."I said in a flat tone, and he growled.

"Fine!"I spun, seeing Pitch raising his arms, the shadows and nightmares reacting and shifting, pawing the ground and pulsating, like a breathing army of fear. I stepped back and shot tendrils of shadows around the children.

"Do not move, understand me?"I asked them, moving them up and placing them at a safe altitude on a shadow-cloud above us. With them safe, I faced Pitch, the guardians coming up next to me, all of us in a line that would never break, no matter what happened here. Because we were here to protect the children. Guardian or spirit. "C'mon, big brother."I whispered. Something in his eyes clicked, and without a word, the army broke.

"Fight!"I shouted, and the guardians rushed towards the oncoming shadows and nightmares, me turning and running, picking up Bunny in my arms and huddling him in my cloak as I retreated to gain some time to think. This was not good, the army was fully under Pitch's command.

"Oy, sheila, what the bloody hell do you think you're doing?"Bunny demanded as I stopped at an intersection where a car was parked, damage probably done by the sleigh's abrupt landing. I looked around and my nerves began to act up.

"I have to think!"I snapped, watching as a streak of ice shot right towards a rising Pitch, Jack already attacking him in the air while North hacked and Toothina and her babyteeth that I had freed before Pitch and I left, fighting as hard as they could. But at this rate we wouldn't last too long.

"Why dontcha just control them yourself?"Bunny asked, and I bit my lip, shaking my head.

"There's too many! I can't control all of this power that Pitch has. He's spread too much fear, gotten too strong."I felt my voice shaking, all of the adrenaline from before wearing off as my mind ran at a mile a minuet. I felt two paws on my chin and I looked down, Bunny looking up at me in my arms with a serious face, looking right into my eyes.

"C'mon, this is Pitch we're talkin' about here. You're stronger than him, he's just trying to mess with your head. Those kids might believe in us, but you need to believe in yourself, sheila...I know I do."He said, and I gulped, nodding and collecting myself. I looked around and gasped, throwing an arm out in front of me and slicing a nightmare with a shadow from my cloak, the being dissapearing only to have two more come from my other side, Bunny hopping from my arms to attack a shadow that had gotten too close.

"Bunny!"I screamed, as the shadow pulled him off and smashed him right through the car window. I pulled my hand back and threw it diagnally in front of me, fending off two nightmares as a third breathed down my neck, causing me to jump and spin, hand slicing right through its chest. "Bunny!"I shouted again, frantic, spinning around as another shadow came from my left, the shadow that had thrown Bunny in the window pulling its hand out...

"You called, anklebiter?" I almost cried out in relief as a 6,1 bunny with nerves of steel and a master of Tai Chi was pullled from the car, slamming a foot into the face of the shadow, the being dissipating as Bunny reached back and spun out two boomerangs, throwing them on either side of him, me ducking as they sliced through five shadows and a nightmare before coming back and landing right in his hands.

"About damn time!"I shouted, pulling out a ball of shadow and tossing it into the oncoming line of nightmares, the horses reeling up on their hind legs as the shadowball exploded and enveloped them, destroying them only to reveal a sight I'd rather not see. Jack was shooting at Pitch, but a massive explosion of darkness shot out, crashing into him and sending him flying far, over the houses as ice tried to cusion him, sending him out of my sight.

"Bunny, Jack!"I shouted, and he looked up to see Jack dissapear, busy fighting off the seemingly endless amount of shadows and nightmares appearing from the alleys. When one was down, two more appeared, and the others didn't look like they were doing any better.

"You have to get to Pitch."Bunny said, and I faced him, about to protest, when he grabbed my arm and pulled me towards him, face serious. "Don't worry about me, I'll fight these dingos all day long if I have to! You're the only of us who stands a chance against Pitch, and if you can take him down then you can control these things without his interference."

I wanted to believe him, wanted to do it, but...fighting Pitch, and then an army of shadows larger than anything I'de even ever seen...

"Bunny, I don't...I can't..."I muttered, and he threw a boomerang over my head and, without my consent, picked me up and threw me over his shoulder, jumping onto the hood of the car and setting me down.

"Damnit Black, I believe in you!"He shouted in my face, and I looked into his eyes, the eyes that I might not get to see again if we failed. The friend I would lose. If I didn't do something. So what the hell was I doing waiting on the roof of a car while my friends were fighting for their lives? It was time to put on the big girl pants.

"White Crane into Parting the Wind."I said seriously. I chose those moves for two reasons: It was the fastest way to get me into the air while possibly taking out a few shadows and giving Bunny a headstart. That and they were the only two moves he was able to teach me. He got a smile on, one that made his eyes go bright, and then knelt, cupping his hands. I jumped onto them and crouched, pulling a hand in front of me as Bunny quickly hopped up into the air, my hands fanning out in front of me as I jumped, throwing down and arc of shadows and taking down the perimeter of nightmares around Bunny.

I looked up, pulling myself onto a shadow cloud and rocketing myself through the air. My eyes focused on Pitch, his silouhette facing to where he had thrown Jack, unaware of my immediate arrival. A few days ago, I wouldn't have lifted a finger against Pitch. Now, I was about to do a hell of a lot more than that. I pulled a hand back behind me, feeling a massive ball of shadows swirrling around it, blood pumping through me so white-hot that it almost burned.

"Hey Big Brother!"I shouted, and he turned to face me just as my fist connected with the side of his face, a loud crack ringing througout the sky as he was thrown back. I followed him, the clouds following us as I began my onslaught, images and anger flashing through me. "This is for lying to me!"I screamed, hair flailing around me as I slammed my arm sideways into Pitch, sending him into the side of a building.

"That was for Sandy!"I shouted, images of the happy little man in my mind, tears in my eyes as I slammed into Pitch, hands around his throat, panting as he struggled, hands gripping my wrists tight, a pleading and helpless face on. I got closer to him and glared, seething through my teeth.

"This is for the children-"

"Stop!"He screamed pitifully, panting and wheezing. I tightened my grip and growled,

"Why should I?"

"I-I'm sorry!"He whispered, eyes small and teary, "I...I'm sorry that I have to do this."His voice changed into a deep, malevolent tone, and before I could pull away shadows snaked up my arms and coiled around me, squeezing and wrapping up my arms and down my body, encasing me like snakes. I struggled, writhing as he laughed and pushed back, moving us into the center of the sky, hands so tight on my wrists my bones felt like they were cracking.

"Why? Why are you doing this to me?"He shouted, shaking me as the shadows trapped me, right above where my friends were fighting for their lives. "I was your brother!"He shouted, my eyes meeting his.

"You're right."I said, looking at him like I never had before. Because before, I'd been blind. "You were my brother, until you decided to manipulate me into turning my back on the children."

"I didn't manipulate you!"He defended, voice wavering and defensive, "I tried to make the world a place where people believed in us! Where they saw us!" I shook my head solomnly at him and said,

"They _see_ me, Pitch." In a moment, a small moment, his face broke. His eyes were crushed, his grimance turned into a pained frown, and in a small moment, I saw that he knew. This was him. Not me.

After that moment ended, his face became hostile, teeth clenched and shadows wrapping even tighter around me, crushing me and making my breath escape in one giant gasp.

"Fine! Maybe after you watch your friends die you'll rethink!"He shouted, and pulled his hand back, looking down at the fight below. I struggled, screaming and trying to escape, to save my friends.

What Pitch was going to do I would never know. Before he could even muster up a shadow, something long, golden, and glowing shot out and wrapped around Pitch, throwing him from me, as well as the shadows around me that quickly became de-tatched. I fell, body sore and bruised as I tried to muster up a black cloud, only to fall on something much...sandier.

I looked up from where I had landed, and a small, golden hand reached down to me. My eyes went wide and my breath caught in a loud gasp, seeing a man I never thought I'd ever see again. Disregarding the hand, I flung my arms around Sandy's neck, squeezing tightly and crying out,

"Sandy!" He hugged me back, and I whispered, "I'm so sorry...I didn't know...I couldn't..." He pushed me back softly and winked a little golden eye at me, a heart appearing above his head. I let out a sigh, smiling at the little man that I'd never been happier to see in my life.

"Impossible!"Pitch thundered, and I stood, looking up at him as he panted, crouching on his cloud with tufts of hair hanging in front of his face. "You are dead! I killed you!"He shouted in disbelief and rage, but Sandy shook a finger at him, a circle with a line through it appearing above his head. Before Pitch could retort, Sandy shot out a rope of sleep-sand, wrapping around Pitch and slowly beginning to spin, swinging him high in the air in wide circles.

It looked like a merry-go-round from hell, Pitch's screams heightening with every spin.

"Sandy, if you can get rid of him, then I can try to control the chaos below."I said, and he nodded to me, a determined smile on his face. He swung his arm three more times like a cowboy, and then, at the height of the momentum, released the rope. Pitch screamed, flinging away from us, the sand wrapping around him like a blanket and arching through the sky, quickly becoming a speck on the horizon.

I would have collapsed in happiness at this point, but I had a job to do. Slowly, I walked to the edge of the cloud, Sandy lowering us a bit as I spread my arms, cloak falling open just a bit. I closed my eyes, the sounds around me dulling and dissapearing until all I could hear was the steady thump of blood in my ears. I felt power surge through my arms, concentrating on it, pulling it into me, my breath slowly, gradually pulling itself into my lungs until my chest was about to burst. Prickling went all over my arms and stomach, my jaw clenching until Toothina would have passed out from the pressure on my teeth, the rhythm of blood in my ears quickening to a dangerous level. I breathed in one last, massive breath, a power building inside my chest as I soon realized that the sound had stopped beyond me.

And I screamed.

"_STOOOP!" _When I opened my eyes, the cloud was on the ground, and all of the nightmares and shadows were facing me, dazed as if in a trance. I panted, body shaking from the release of energy it took to create this stupor. A lock of hair fell in my eyes, but I couldn't care less. I just panted for a moment, glaring at them all, blood pressure falling back to a safe speed.

I flung my right arm out and pointed to the direction of the cave.

"CAVE! NOW!"I shouted like an irate mother, and immediatly the nightmares whinnyed, then turned and stomped throught buildings, passing through like ghosts as the shadows slinked behind them, a rush of kids caught with their hands in the cookie jar and rushing to their rooms for groundings. Once they were all gone, my throat sore and body tired, I heard massive cheers from an ecclectic group.

Footsteps ran towards me, but I was so exauhsted that the second a familiar, furry presence got near me, I plopped right down on the cloud.

"Black-"

"Give me a second, would ya?"I mused, muscles shaking as I looked up at their smiling faces, my cloud dropping down and the children running up to me.

"Where's Jack?"Jamie asked, concerned. Damn, I'd almost forgot about the kid in all that was going on. I looked up at Sandy, but he seemed to already understand, and nodded. Everyone piled onto the cloud, Bunnymund reaching down and pulling me to my feet, supporting me with his arm snaked around my waist, mine around his as everyone cheered, soaring through the air.

"Cool!"One of the kids shouted, looking down.

"Black, we owe you thanks. Without you this all be impossible."North said kindly, a soft hand on my shoulder. I thought that was it, and smiled, only to immediatly be crushed in a bone-softening hug, North crying loudly as he bellowed, "I vas so worried! My little girl vas so strong and brave!"

"North!"Bunny shouted, "Yer crushin' her, ya old date!"North immediatly stopped and set me down, right as the cloud touched the surface of a frozen lake, a layer of snow over the top, the cloud dissapearing and leaving me to walk clumsily forward.

Jack was just shaking off what must have been unconciousness, his hair ruffled and a small cut on his lip. Once he stood, I walked over to him, his smile immediatly fading as I gave him a hard punch on the arm. He stumbled back and shouted,

"Hey! What was that for?!"

"For taking a little siesta while we saved the world!"I teased, and he wanted to retort, but instead gave a smile and shrugged. I shook my head and was about to sing his praises, when something cold and soft smacked me right in the side of the face.

I gasped and looked over, whiping the snow from my neck, before realizing the culprit. I glared and slowly, slowly turned my face to Jack. Everything around us quieted, my emotionless face starring into Jack's as he got a slow, nervoise laugh.

"Not yer best idea, Snowflake."Bunny muttered, as I pulled a ball of shadow into my hand inside my cloak, unseen to Jack. He laughed nervoisly again and held his hands in front of him, saying shakily,

"H-hey now, it's just a j-joke-" And then I nailed the punk in the face with a snowball. He shook himself and laughed, eyes glittering as he pulled snow from beneath him, me ducking as the snow soared above my head. I spun when I heard the thump, seeing Bunny covered in white snow and shaking with anger.

"SNOWFLAKE!"Bunny shouted, and threw his own snowball, only to have it smack me in the head instead. I spun to him and ran, skidding to a stop only when the kids decided to join in and threw snowballs at North, who looked around in surprise and glee. In a matter of seconds, everyone was in on it, even Toothina and Sandy. I laughed, picking up a cold mound of snow and skidding back to gain space from Jamie, about to throw it...

"Hey!"I shouted, a hand throwing me around. I spun and gasped, the snowball dropping from my hand as he stood there, panting heavily, cuts on his face, hunched over and glaring daggers at me.

"Black!"North and Toothina shouted, but everyone remained back, me straigthening up in front of him. I looked right into his eyes, narrowing my own, and thinking about how all I ever wanted was for this face to smile. But things had changed. Changed drastically.

"..I'm not afraid of the dark anymore."I said in a low tone, Pitch scoffing and smiling. I did not like this smile. I didn't think I ever would again.

"Then why are they here?"He asked, and I turned, seeing the group narrowing in on each other as, from out of the trees, nightmares slowly stalked. They shook their manes, eyes narrowed at us...and yet, I truley wasn't afraid.

"They aren't my fears. Guy?"I asked calmly. Slowly, they all shook their heads, and I turned to see Pitch's eyes grow wide, stumbling a step backwards. He shook his head, a hand up to protect himself as a massive galloping sounded behind me. They were advancing, and would soon entrap him in a world of fears.

I threw my arms out on my sides, the galloping stopping so suddenly that my cloak blew forward a bit, silence following. I stopped the nightmares. Not for Pitch, but for me. This was going to be the last chance I had to tell him...

"Pitch."I said seriously, a sadness creeping inside me as he gave me a protected, curious look. I took a deep breath, and said, "You've caused me so much pain. You took my friends, the children, and my purpose away from me for your own personal gain. You blinded me. You lied to me. All of the fear and pain you spread falls on my shoulders and I will never live that down, the things I have done. The things you have done. I will never forgive you...

"And yet...despite all of that, big brother...I will miss you."I finished in a whisper. And then dropped my arms. Pitch screamed and tried to run away, but the black blurs that rushed past me quickly wrapped around him like leeches, twisting around him. His fears that would follow him to our cave and keep him there.

Once he was gone, past the trees, there was a cheering behind me. Despite what just happened, I relaxed and smiled. It was over. I turned and walked to the group, slapping a hand on Jack's shoulder and saying,

"I think you want to be a Guardian now." He gave me a smile and a laugh, and as the music played and North began to read out of a book he pulled from his coat, I walked.

This was no place for me to be. Guardians were guardians, and they would be a family and work together. Not only was I not a guardian, I had done enough horrible things to be perminantly on the 'Naughty List'. I walked, planning my seclusion for awhile, hiding out until I sorted a few things out.

"Oy, sheila, where ya think you're goin'?"An Australian accent shouted, and I stopped, calling over my shoulder,

"I'm heading out. Not a Guardian, remember?"

"I think that Man in Moon wouldn't protest a...Guardian Trainee."North said sneakily, and my eyes went wide. I spun around, only to come face-to-chest with Bunny, who was giving me a sly smile and holding something in his hands. He reached down, taking my hands in his and placing the smooth object in them.

At first I thought it was an Easter Egg, but when I looked down, I saw a glowing, yellow nightlight.

"New batteries, mate. You'll need 'em. If you're gonna train in the Warren, I can't have ya wakin' me up in the middle of the bloody night, even if you aren't scared of the dark anymore. An you'll need to pay up that debt you owe me on me boomerangs, and-"

"Shut up, Kangaroo."I interrupted, and threw my arms around his neck, hugging him tight to me. After a moment, he hugged me back, tight and warm.

Until a snowball landed right on my neck.

"THAT'S IT FROSTBITE! YOU'RE ASS IS MINE!"I shouted, spinning around and racing for the little winter sprite, skidding along the ice, the kids and North beginning a snowball fight again, Bunny helping me tackle Jack. Toothina and the babyteeth all giggled and cheered for Jack as he and Bunny got into a snowball fight, Sandy and I sitting on the ice and shaking our head. I laughed and threw my hair from my face, watching our ecclectic group.

This is what I protected. These children. These friends.

This happiness.

-End-

_I would like to be the world's most repetitive author and say thank you all and I love you so much. There will be a sequel and I would love it if you gave it a chance. Trust me, it's gonna have...well...mistletoe. And Black. And Bunny. Under a mistletoe. Hint hint. Look forward to it, I love you all 3_


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